JBRART
Of
9AN DIEGO
OF THE
NINETEENTH CENTURY
EDITED BY
SIR AUGUSTUS OAKES, CB.
LATELY OF THE FOREIGN OFFICE
AND
R. B. MOWAT, M.A.
FELLOW AND ASSISTANT TUTOR OF CORPUS CHRISTI COLLEGE, OXFORD
WITH AN INTRODUCTION BY
SIR H. ERLE RICHARDS
K. C.S.I., K.C., B.C.L., M.A.
FELLOW OF ALL SOULS COLLEGE AWD CHICHELE PROFESSOR OF INTERNATIONAL LAW
AND DIPLOMACY IN THE UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD
ASSOCIATE OF THE INSTITUTE OF INTERNATIONAL LAW
OXFORD
AT THE CLARENDON PRESS
OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS
AMEN HOUSE, E.C. 4
LONDON EDINBURGH GLASGOW
LEIPZIG NEW YORK TORONTO
MELBOURNE CAPETOWN BOMBAY
CALCUTTA MADRAS SHANGHAI
HUMPHREY MILFORD
PUBLISHER TO THE
UNIVERSITY
Impression of 1930
First edition, 1918
Printed in Great Britain
INTRODUCTION
IT is now generally accepted that the substantial
basis on which International Law rests is the usage and
practice of nations. And this makes it of the first
importance that the facts from which that usage and
practice are to be deduced should be correctly appre-
ciated, and in particular that the great treaties which
have regulated the status and territorial rights of
nations should be studied from the point of view of
history and international law. It is the object of
this book to present materials for that study in an
accessible form.
The scope of the book is limited, and wisely limited,
to treaties between the nations of Europe, and to
treaties between those nations from 1815 onwards. To
include all treaties affecting all nations would require
many volumes ; nor is it necessary, for the purpose
of obtaining a sufficient insight into the history and
usage of European States on such matters as those
to which these treaties relate, to go further back than
the settlement which resulted from the Napoleonic
wars. The aim of the authors is to present an historical
summary of the international position at the time of
each treaty ; to state the points at issue and the
contentions of the parties ; and so to make readily
accessible the materials on which international lawyers
have to work. For this reason the pure law-making
treaties have been omitted ; the Hague Conventions,
for instance, speak for themselves, and in their construc-
tion the jurist needs little help from general history.
iv INTRODUCTION
A special chapter has been written on diplomatic
forms and procedure with regard to treaties, and this
must take rank as a high authority on these points.
It will be found of particular value in studying the
details of the negotiations which have resulted in
international agreements.
With the general law relating to treaties the authors
make no attempt to deal, and in that they are well-
advised ; both because it is beyond the province of
their work, and because on some points as to the
continuance and avoidance of treaties the law is still
indeterminate and lawyers differ. But there is one
point of law on which an opinion has been pronounced
in the chapter to which reference has been made,
which is a point of much present importance ; and since
it is one that is likely to come up for decision in the
near future, it may be useful to explain it at somewhat
greater length than has been possible in that chapter.
It is as to the effect of war on treaties. It may be that
the peace settlement will make special provision for
the treaties which existed between the belligerents
before war, but if that be not done questions must
arise as to the revival and continuance of former
treaties.
The authors state the general proposition that a
treaty is terminated by the occurrence of war between
the parties, ' war being considered with certain excep-
tions as having the effect of abrogating treaties '. That
statement of the law is well founded on authority, but
there has been a tendency of late to advocate another
view, and there are jurists who maintain that the rule
is, or at least ought to be, that, subject to certain
exceptions, treaties are suspended only by war and
revive on the return of peace. It is desirable on general
INTRODUCTION v
grounds to limit the effect of war on the relation of
states as far as may be possible, but the usage of nations
up to the present time affords no sufficient foundation
for this opinion, in so far as it purports to be a state-
ment of existing law.
The effect of war on any particular treaty must depend
in the first instance on the character of the treaty
itself. There are some treaties which are expressed
to operate in the event of war and have been concluded
with that object. Such, for instance, are the Hague
Conventions and treaties providing for the neutraliza-
tion of particular territories. These obviously cannot
be suspended or annulled by war ; on the contrary,
they are brought into operation by the occurrence
of war. Further, there are some treaties which affect
third parties, and so far as their rights are concerned
it is equally obvious as a general proposition that no
belligerent can affect them by a declaration of war
against any other nation. Again, there are some
treaties which have been fully executed, that is, there
are cases in which the obligations imposed by the treaty
have been performed so that there is no longer any
outstanding liability under them. Such are treaties
of cession under which territory has been ceded and
sovereignty assumed by the State to whom the cession
has been made. It is clear that war does not divest
that sovereignty, for it rests on the accomplished
transfer and no longer on treaty obligation. So in
the case of a treaty imposing the payment of a sum
of money by way of indemnity or otherwise, and pay-
ment made ; war does not open up that again, for the
money has passed and the obligation of the treaty
was thereupon ended. Martens and others have
classified treaties such as these by the name of ' transi-
vi INTRODUCTION
tory ', because the property has passed under them.
But the term is misleading to us because of the sense
in which it is ordinarily used in the English language,
nor is the alternative ' dispositive ' suggested by later
English writers much more lucid. It serves little useful
purpose, however, to dwell on a question of pure
terminology ; the English lawyer will understand what
is meant if these treaties be called ' executed '. The
real reason of the exception of this class of treaties is
that title rests on a completed act, and not on a treaty
obligation of which the liability is still continuing.
It has been said that within the class of treaties
which remain unaffected by war are included treaties
which create rights over land, and are sometimes called
international servitudes. But in the absence of express
stipulation the usage of nations affords no sufficient
foundation for the recognition of a special class of
treaty rights vested with special attributes, and in par-
ticular with the attribute of permanency in spite of war,
such as is assumed in the conception of international
servitudes. The distinction is largely the creation of
text-writers, working on the analogy of the rights known
as servitudes in Roman law ; a dangerous analogy since
the rules of private property cannot be applied with
any degree of exactness to the sovereign rights of
States. There seems no reason why rights conferred
by treaty on one State to be exercised in the territory
of another State should be in any different position
from that of other treaty rights ; and, indeed, that
this is so would appear from the personal element
which is inherent in most such grants to a greater or
less extent. State A before war may be willing to
admit the subjects of State B to the enjoyment of
certain rights in the A territories ; but after war,
INTRODUCTION vii
relations stand on an altogether different footing.
The fact is, that the personal element enters largely
into treaty concessions and that they bear no real
analogy to private rights of servitude. Moreover,
if that analogy were to apply at all, it must apply
equally to the common case of treaties conferring rights
of entering and residing for the purposes of trade,
for those are rights to be exercised on the soil, if the
connexion with the soil is to be the test. But any
extension such as that would be opposed to well-
established usage. The general question of servitudes
was threshed out in the North Atlantic Fisheries
Arbitration at The Hague in 1910, and the Award of
the Tribunal is an express decision that treaty rights
of fishing in territorial waters stand in no different
position from any other treaty rights and that there
is no special law of servitudes applicable to such a case,
even if there be any such special class of servitude
rights at all. The decision on this point has not been
accepted in its entirety by all text-writers ; some of
them already committed to the theory of servitudes are
reluctant to acquiesce in an adverse judgement. But
it is thought that the Award is a correct statement of
international law and that it is in accordance with the
practice of nations ; for though there is authority for
the general doctrine of servitudes to be found in the
opinion of jurists (and even they are not in agreement
as to the extent and the attributes of a servitude), there
is little or no precedent in the usage of nations.1
Indeed, the investigation of the matter at The Hague
demonstrated, as is submitted, that the doctrine could
1 For instance, the French treaty-right of fishing on the New-
foundland coast (Treaty of Utrecht, 17 13) was renewed in express
terms after every war between France and Great Britain.
viii INTRODUCTION
not be maintained, or at least could not be maintained
to anything like the extent which has been claimed
for it. The Mediatized States which formed the
Germanic Confederation had mutual agreements re-
lating to rights of way and the like which have been
called servitudes, but this was a special case ; the
States in those respects were really in the position of
landowners rather than sovereigns and the rights
were analogous to those of dominium rather than of
imperium. Nor has this precedent ever become part
of international law. The better opinion, therefore,
seems to be that so-called servitudes created by treaty
stand in no different position than other treaty rights,
and are affected by war in no different way.
There is another class of treaties which it seems
reasonable to hold suspended only during war and to
revive on the termination of hostilities, in the absence
of any agreement to the contrary ; such, for instance,
are the treaties which provide for extradition or the
mutual enforcement of judgements. These treaties
are intended to be permanent, and depend on no
personal considerations ; they are matters of mutual
convenience. But the law cannot be said to be definite
on this point.
Subject to these observations the general rule is that
treaties are terminated by war. And indeed this is
only natural. The more common kind of treaties
regulating, for instance, the alliances of States, the
economic relations of States, mutual facilities for com-
merce— all these must obviously depend on the personal
relations of the contracting parties, and, as has been
already observed, those personal relations cannot fail to
be affected by war. Trade with a friend is one thing,
trade with a nation which has till lately been a bitter
INTRODUCTION ix
enemy is another thing ; the conditions are altered,
and the rule that treaties generally are abrogated at
the outbreak of war is based on good reason.
It has therefore been the common practice to make
express provision in treaties of peace for the renewal
or confirmation of such treaties existing before the war
as the parties may agree to continue. In the absence
of express provision it is of course still open to the
parties to agree to the continuance in any other way,
by diplomatic negotiation or by acquiescence. But
in default of agreement, the general rule comes into
force and treaties are held abrogated by war.
It will be observed that a large number of treaties
discussed in this book fall within the class of executed
contracts to which States other than belligerents are
parties. But economic treaties between the belli-
gerents are at an end, in default of provision to the
contrary, and that gives to the opposing States the power
of adjusting their trade relations in accordance with
the altered conditions which will prevail after the war.
H. ERIE RICHARDS.
NOTE
IT is our pleasant duty to acknowledge the courtesy of
the Foreign Office in affording us facilities for carrying out
this work ; and also to thank Godfrey Hertslet, Esq., of the
Foreign Office for allowing us to use some of his father's
material. We desire, also, to acknowledge gratefully the
action of H.M. Stationery Office in waiving the Government
Copyright in respect of certain documents in Hertslet's
Map of Europe by Treaty. For permission to use the
material of the map of France in the last century from
An Historical Atlas of Modern Europe (Oxford University
Press) we are indebted to Messrs. C. Grant Robertson and
J. G. Bartholomew. Finally, our gratitude is due to
Professor Sir H. Erie Richards for suggestions and help
given to us at every stage.
A. H. O.
R. B. M.
March, 1918.
CONTENTS
CHAP. PAGE
INTRODUCTION iii
I. ON THE CONCLUSION OF TREATIES IN ITS TECHNICAL
ASPECT ......... i
II. THE RESTORATION OF EUROPE. . . . .16
Texts : The Treaty of Vienna (1815)— Epitome of
Annexes ........ 37
III. THE INDEPENDENCE OF GREECE .... 99
Texts : The Treaty of London (1832)— The Protocol
of London (1830) — The Treaty of London (1863) . 1 16
IV. THE KINGDOM OF BELGIUM ..... 126
Texts : The Treaty of London (1839)— The Con-
versations of 1906 . . . . . .141
V. TURKEY AND THE POWERS OF EUROPE . . .158
Texts : The Treaty of Paris (1856)— The Straits
Convention (1856) — The Declaration of Paris
(1856) 176
VI. THE DANISH DUCHIES . . . . . .186
Texts : The Treaty of London (1852) — The Treaty
of Vienna (1864) ...... 198
VII. THE UNION OF ITALY ...... 210
Texts : The Treaty of Zurich (1859)— The Treaty
of Vienna ( 1 866) ...... 226
VIII. AUSTRIA AND PRUSSIA ...... 241
Text : The Treaty of Prague (1866) . . .251
IX. THE GRAND DUCHY OF LUXEMBURG .... 256
Text : The Treaty of London (1867) • • • 260
X. THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR 263
Texts : The Preliminaries of Versailles (1871) — The
Treaty of Frankfort (1871) — The Constitution of
the German Empire ...... 274
*ii CONTENTS
CHAP. PAGE
XI. TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND THE BALKAN STATES . .312
Texts : The Treaty of London (1871) — The Treaty
of Berlin (1878)— The Treaty of London (1913)—
The Treaty of Bucharest (1913) .... 330
XII. THE TRIPLE ALLIANCE 367
Texts : The Treaty of Vienna (1879)— The Triple
Alliance (i 903) 372
APPENDIX :
Text : The Treaty of San Stefano (1878) . . 377
MAPS
PAGE
Napoleon's Empire . . . . . . . .16
Partitions of Poland 20-1
Central and Eastern Europe, 1815 . . .. . .23
Greece, 1832-1913 .... . 101
The Frontiers of Belgium .... . 13*
The Union of Italy, 1859-70 . . . . .211
Prussia, 1815-71 . 245
France, 1814-1917 - 265
Aspirations of the Balkan States in 1912 . . . .315
Balkan States, 1878-1914 323
CHAPTER I
ON THE CONCLUSION OF TREATIES IN ITS
TECHNICAL ASPECT
Forms of international contract — Full powers — Signature —
Ratification — U.S.A. — Parliamentary authority — Ratification
article — Permanent treaties — Terminable treaties — Interpre-
tation — Tariff treaties — Extradition treaties.
USAGE has not prescribed any necessary form of inter-
national contract.1
Treaties, Conventions, Agreements, Declarations, &c.,
are all assumed to have the same binding force,2 and their
observance or repudiation are matters of conscience (or
the want of it) on the part of the contracting parties,
provided always that there are no considerations such as
force majeure to prevent their fulfilment.
In order to conclude or negotiate the more formal of
these instruments, that is to say, Treaties and in many
instances Conventions or Agreements, it is the practice to
provide the negotiator with a full power from his sovereign,
or in the case of a republic from the head of the state,
investing him with the necessary powers for accomplishing
his mission.
Full powers, in the practice of Great Britain, are of two
kinds, called, respectively, general and special full powers.
An ambassador, for instance, appointed to reside at a foreign
court, may be provided with a general full power covering
1 Hall's International Law, 4th ed., p. 343, § 109.
1 Treaties, and some Conventions, are concluded in the names of
the Sovereigns of the respective countries. Other Conventions, and
as a rule Agreements and Declarations, are concluded in the name
of the respective ' Governments '. To this extent they are of a less
formal nature.
2 THE CONCLUSION OF TREATIES
any negotiations with a view to the conclusion of a treaty
which he may enter upon in the course of his residence at
that court ; a special full power, on the other hand, is
limited to a particular occasion which is indicated. Both
are otherwise couched in identical terms to the following
effect :
George, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Ireland and of the British Dominions
beyond the seas King, Defender of the Faith, Emperor of
India. To all and singular to whom these Presents shall
come, Greeting !
Whereas, for the better treating of and arranging any
matters [certain matters] which are now in discussion or which
may come into discussion between Us and . . . We have
judged it expedient to invest a fit person with Full Power to
conduct negotiations [to conduct the said discussion] on Our
part : Know ye, therefore, that'We, reposing especial Trust
and Confidence in the Wisdom, Loyalty, Diligence, and Cir-
cumspection of Our [name, style and title of Plenipotentiary] ,
have named, made, constituted and appointed, as we do
by these Presents name, make, constitute and appoint him
Our undoubted Commissioner, Procurator and Plenipoten-
tiary : Giving to him all manner of Power and Authority
to treat, adjust and conclude with such Minister or Ministers
as may be vested with similar Power and Authority on the
part of ... any Treaty, Convention or Agreement between
Us and . . . [any Treaty, Convention or Agreement that may
tend to the attainment of the above-mentioned end] and to
sign for Us and in Our name, everything so agreed upon
and concluded, and to do and transact all such other
matters as may appertain thereto, in as ample manner and
form, and with, equal force and efficacy, as We Ourselves
could do, if personally present : Engaging and Promising,
upon Our Royal Word, that whatever things shall be so
transacted and concluded by Our said Commissioner,
Procurator, and Plenipotentiary, shall, subject if necessary
to Our Ratification, be agreed to, acknowledged and ac-
cepted by Us in the fullest manner, and that We will never
suffer, either in the whole or in part, any person whatso-
ever to infringe the same, or act contrary thereto, as far
as it lies in Our power.
In witness whereof We have caused the Great Seal of
SIGNATURE 3
Our United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland to be
affixed to these Presents, which We have signed with Our
Royal Hand.
Given at Our Court of ... the . . . day of ... in the
year of Our Lord one thousand nine hundred and . . .
and in the . . . Year of Our Reign.
The words printed in italics between square brackets are
those of the special full power.
The document bears the Royal sign manual.
Before entering upon negotiations, the Plenipotentiaries
produce to each other their respective full powers. Every
treaty, after reciting in its preamble its object and the
names of the Plenipotentiaries, goes on to say, ' Who, after
having communicated to each other their respective Full
Powers, found in good and due form, have agreed upon the
following articles. . . .'
The treaty between two states which results from the
negotiations thus authorized, is signed in duplicate by the
respective Plenipotentiaries, and in the language of each
of them in parallel columns. In a treaty between, say,
Great Britain and France, the signature of the British
Plenipotentiary comes first in the copy to be retained by
the British Government, and that of the French Plenipo-
tentiary last. Conversely, in the copy to be retained by the
French Government the signature of the French Plenipo-
tentiary comes first and that of the British Plenipotentiary
last. Similarly, in the preamble of the English copy, the
name of the English monarch is mentioned first, and in
that of the French copy the name of the President of the
French Republic.
On the conclusion of the treaty, the English copy is
sent home for preservation amongst the British official
archives, and the ratification of the Sovereign is prepared
in the following form :
George, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Ireland and of the British Dominions
B 2
4 THE CONCLUSION OF TREATIES
beyond the seas King, Defender of the Faith, Emperor of
India. To all and singular to whom these Presents shall
come, Greeting !
Whereas a [Treaty or as the case may be] between Us
and . . . was concluded and signed at ... on the . . . day
of ... in the year of Our Lord one thousand nine hundred
and ... by the Plenipotentiaries of Us and of ... duly
and respectively authorized for that purpose, which
[Treaty] is word for word as follows : — [here follows a copy
of the Treaty from beginning to end in both texts, as in
the original, including the signatures and seals (L. S.) l also
in copy],
We, having seen and considered the [Treaty] aforesaid,
have approved, accepted and confirmed the same in all and
every one of its Articles and Clauses, as We do by these
Presents approve, accept, confirm and ratify it for Our-
selves, Our Heirs and Successors ; engaging and promising
upon Our Royal Word that We will sincerely and faithfully
perform and observe all and singular the things which are
contained and expressed in the [Treaty] aforesaid, and that
We will never suffer the same to be violated by any one,
or transgressed in any manner, as far as it lies in Our power.
For the greater testimony and validity of all which We have
caused the Great Seal of Our United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland to be affixed to these Presents, which
We have signed with Our Royal Hand.
Given at Our Court of ... the . . . day of ... in the
year of Our Lord one thousand nine hundred and . . .
and in the . . . year of Our Reign. [Here follows the Royal
signature.]
This ratification is then sent to the British representative
at the Court of the other signatory Power, to be exchanged
against a similar document issuing from the latter, which
is then sent home to be preserved amongst the official
1 The letters L. S., enclosed in a circle, and placed on the left of
the copy of a signature to a treaty or other document, indicate
the place where the seal is affixed in the original document (Locus
sigilli). It is usual in treaties occupying more than one folio page
to connect the several pages together with a narrow ribbon of the
national colours. The ends of the ribbons are then collected together
on the last page of the document opposite the signatures, and the
seals of the different Plenipotentiaries are impressed in wax upon
them as a security against fraudulent abstraction of any of the pages.
RATIFICATION 5
archives. It is customary for the representative in question
and the Minister for Foreign Affairs of the other signatory
Power to sign a protocol recording the fact that the ex-
change of the ratifications has been duly effected.
In the case of a general treaty between several Powers,
the ratifications are sometimes deposited in the archives of
the country in which the treaty is signed, as, for instance,
those of the London Treaty of March 10, 1883, respecting
the navigation of the Danube ; those of the General Act
of Brussels of July 2, 1890, respecting the African Slave
Trade, &c. : thus the multiplication of ratifications is
avoided.
The practice of the United States differs in one respect
from the procedure above indicated. According to the
constitution of that country, the treaty-making power is
vested in the President, subject to the approval of two-
thirds of the Senate, and there are instances on record
in which the Senate has introduced amendments into a
treaty as a condition of its acceptance. If such amend-
ments are not accepted by the other party to the treaty, the
treaty remains inoperative, as in the case of the ' Clarendon-
Dallas ' Treaty of October 17, 1856, relating to Central
America,1 or the Treaty of Versailles, 1919.
In the United States a treaty duly ratified by the Senate,
and entering into force, becomes ipso facto a portion of the
law of the land. This is not so in England, and care has
therefore to be taken in negotiating a treaty that its
stipulations are not antagonistic to the law, or if they are
so, that the law be amended so that it shall agree with the
1 Stale Papers, vol. xlvii, p. 677. See also United States Rati-
fication with Amendments on p. 687 of the same volume. The
question whether it would be possible for the Queen to ratify an
engagement which had not been signed by a Plenipotentiary on the
part of Her Majesty, was incidentally raised by Lord Clarendon on
the receipt of the United States Ratification with Amendments ;
but as the Amendments were not accepted by Great Britain, this
question did not assume a concrete form, but remained an open
problem (see p. 692 of the same volume).
6 THE CONCLUSION OF TREATIES
treaty; otherwise a government may find itself in the
position of being bound towards a foreign country to give
effect to stipulations which the law of the land forbids
it to carry out. In this connexion it may be mentioned
that a stipulation involving a money payment by England
has been thus guardedly worded, ' Her Majesty undertakes
to recommend to Her Parliament to vote a sum of money,'
or words to that effect. Another case in point is that of
Heligoland. Article XII of the Anglo-German Agreement
of July i, 1890, says : ' Subject to the Assent of the
British Parliament, the Sovereignty over the Island of
Heligoland, together with its dependencies, is ceded by Her
Britannic Majesty to His Majesty the Emperor of Germany.' *
It has been held in some quarters that no such assent
was necessary, and that it constituted a surrender of the
Queen's Prerogative. Be that as it may, an Act of Par-
liament was passed on August 4, 1890, assenting to the
carrying out of this Agreement.2 The Commercial Treaty
of 1860 with France also contained many undertakings to
recommend to Parliament the reduction of duties agreed
to, subject to Parliament's assent. Thus no breach of the
treaty would result from any failure on the part of the
Parliament to comply with the recommendation.
In the case of general treaties between several Powers,
concluded as a rule in the French language, the Plenipo-
tentiaries sign in alphabetical order of countries : thus
the German Plenipotentiary would sign under the letter A
(Allemagne) ; those of Spain and the United States under
the letter E (Espagne, Etats-Unis). This principle was
adopted in the Vienna Congress Treaty of 1815. Never-
theless, the British copy of the General Act of Brussels of
1890 (relating to the African Slave Trade) was signed first
by the British Plenipotentiaries, the others following in the
alphabetical order of their countries.
1 State Papers, vol. Ixxxii, p. 46.
* 53 & 54 Vic. caP- 32- State Papers, vol. Ixxxii, p. 668.
RATIFICATION ARTICLE 7
The Treaty of Berlin, I878,1 presents another variation
of this principle. In the preamble of the British copy,
Great Britain is mentioned first, then France, then the
remainder in their alphabetical order. In signing, Great
Britain came first, then Turkey, then the others in alpha-
betical order. No absolute rule is followed. With regard
to the now customary use of the French language in general
treaties between several Powers, it is to be observed that
every country has strictly the right to require that its
own version of a treaty shall be expressed in its own
language. In departing from this custom, for the sake of
convenience, in the Vienna Congress Treaty of 1815, it
was expressly laid down in Article CXX of that instrument
that the use of the French language therein should not be
construed into a precedent for the future ; that every
Power, therefore, reserved to itself the adoption in future
negotiations and conventions of the language it has hereto-
fore employed in its diplomatic relations ; and that that
treaty should not be cited as a precedent contrary to the
established practice.
All treaties and conventions contain, or should contain,
a ratification article. Although its absence is no bar
to ratification, it sets at rest all doubt as to the in-
tention.2 There are instances in which the less formal
' Agreement ' has received ratification, though unprovided
with a stipulation requiring it.
The ratification article is generally the last one in the
treaty, and is couched in terms to the following effect :
' The present Treaty [Convention] shall be ratified and the
Ratifications shall be exchanged at ... within . . . weeks,
or sooner if possible.' Occasionally no limit of time is
stated, the words ' as soon as possible ' being employed.
It has sometimes happened that when the exchange of
1 State Papers, vol. Ixix, p. 749.
1 Of course, a treaty such as the ' Holy Alliance ', which wa3
signed by the Sovereigns themselves, does not require ratification.
3 THE CONCLUSION OF TREATIES
ratifications has been delayed beyond the stipulated time,
an agreement has been signed extending that time. On
other occasions of the same kind the exchange has taken
place notwithstanding the expiration of the period, and
nothing said about it.
In modern times Treaties of Commerce have almost
invariably been made terminable at the end of a certain
specified time, subject to one of the parties thereto giving
notice to the other of an intention to terminate it. Such a
notice is often referred to as a ' Denunciation ' of the treaty.
Article 25 of the Anglo-Belgian Treaty of Commerce and
Navigation of July 23, I862,1 declares that ' The present
Treaty shall continue in force for ten years dating from
the tenth day after the exchange of the Ratifications. In
case neither of the two Contracting Parties should have
notified, twelve months before the end of the said period,
its intention to terminate the Treaty, it shall remain in
force until the expiration of a year dating from the day on
which either of the High Contracting Parties shall have
given notice for its termination.' An Article similar in its
terms is now introduced generally into Treaties of Commerce.
In denouncing a treaty under the powers conferred by
a stipulation of the above purport, no particular form or
procedure is laid down. In the case of the Belgian Treaty
of 1862, and of that with the Zollverein of May 30, 1865,
both of which were denounced by Great Britain on July 28,
1897, the following procedure was adopted : On that date
the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Lord Salisbury,
addressed a dispatch to the British Minister at Brussels in
the following terms : ' I have to request that you will at
once give notice of the intention of Her Majesty's Govern-
ment to terminate the Treaty of Commerce and Navigation
between Great Britain and Belgium signed on the 23rd July,
1862. In virtue of the stipulations contained in Article XXV,
the Treaty will accordingly terminate upon the expiration
1 State Rapers, vol. lii, p. 8.
of a year dating from the day upon which you give the
notice.'1 An exactly similar dispatch (mutatis mutandis)
was addressed on the same day to the British Ambassador
at Berlin denouncing the Zollverein Treaty of 1865. The
reason for these denunciations, as explained in subsequent
correspondence, was that these two treaties contained an
unusual stipulation under which Belgian and German
merchandise, respectively, was entitled to admission to
British Colonies on the same terms as merchandise from
Great Britain, the mother country. This treatment ex-
tended, under the operation of the ' most favoured nation '
Article, to all other countries having commercial treaties
with Great Britain. Canada was at that moment elaborat-
ing a law granting preferential treatment to the merchandise
of the United Kingdom, in which foreign nations should
not participate, and it became necessary, therefore, to get
rid of the two obnoxious treaties which, as long as they
continued in force, would entitle all foreign countries to
participate in advantages intended for Great Britain only,
thus making preferential treatment of the mother country
impossible. The British representatives at Brussels and
Berlin gave notice to the respective Governments, as
instructed, and the two treaties lapsed in due course.
It is not unusual, and it is certainly desirable, to notify
in the official press that a foreign country has denounced
a treaty. In the instance quoted above, the Belgian
Government announced the British denunciation of their
treaty in the Moniteur Beige of August i, 1897. Again,
when the Hawaiian Government, in 1878, denounced certain
Articles of their Treaty with Great Britain of July 10,
1851, a notice announcing the fact was published in the
London Gazette of February 19, 1878.2 When, in 1896, the
Dominican Republic denounced their Treaty of March 6,
1850, by a Note from their Minister of Foreign Affairs to
1 Slate Papers, vol. Ixxxvi, p. 324.
1 Ibid., vol. Ixix, p. 616.
io THE CONCLUSION OF TREATIES
the British Secretary of State, the fact was announced in
the London Gazette of August 21, i8g6,1 and similarly in
other cases the same course has been followed.
Speaking generally, political treaties are of a permanent
character, and are not made subject to termination, unless
their nature is such as to render that course desirable or
obvious ; but there are other treaties besides those for
regulating commercial intercourse, which are as a rule
terminable on denunciation, for instance, Extradition
Treaties and others treating of a particular subject.
Article XI of the Treaty of August 9, 1842, between Great
Britain and the United States, declares that the tenth
Article (which deals with the Extradition of fugitive
criminals) 'shall continue in force until one or the other
of the parties shall signify its wish to terminate it, and no
longer '.2 The Extradition Treaty between Great Britain
and Serbia of November 23, 1901, Article i8,3 provided
that ' The present Treaty . . . may be terminated by either
of the High Contracting Parties at any time on giving to
the other six months' notice of its intention to do so ' ;
that between Great Britain and Spain of June 4, 1878,
contained a similar stipulation (Article 17).* Many other
instances might be quoted, such as the Agreement with
Denmark of June 21, 1881, respecting merchant seamen
deserters,5 terminable on one year's notice ; a similar
Agreement of July 25, 1883, respecting relief of distressed
seamen,6 also terminable on one year's notice ; Agreement
with Portugal respecting Money Orders, January 17, 1883,'
terminable on six months' notice, &c.
A treaty which is not, in virtue of its stipulations, ter-
minable in the manner described, can in strictness be
terminated only by mutual agreement between the con-
tracting parties, or by the occurrence of a war between
1 State Papers, vol. Ixxxviii, p. 214.
* Ibid., vol. xxx, p. 366. 3 Ibid., vol. xcii, p. 46.
4 Ibid., vol. Ixix, p. 12. 5 Ibid., vol. Ixxii, p. 6.
• Ibid., vol. Ixxiv, p. 77. 7 Ibid., vol. Ixxiv, p. 5.
TERMINABLE TREATIES II
them, war being considered, with certain exceptions, as
having the effect of abrogating treaties, or by the advent
of special circumstances incompatible with its continued
observance. These arc matters which need not here be
entered into : it will be sufficient to note one well-known
instance in which an abrogation without consent has been
attempted, namely, in the case of the Black Sea Articles
of the Treaty of Paris of 1856, regarding which the Russian
Government announced, in 1870, that it held itself to be
emancipated. Great Britain replied that it had always
been held that the right of releasing a party to a treaty
belonged only to the Governments which had been parties
to the original instrument. Russia's bare announcement
of withdrawal, if acquiesced in, would result in the entire
destruction of treaties in their essence. Russia thereupon
abandoned the position she had taken up, and a conference
was held in London at which the articles objected to were
amended by common consent, and a Declaration was at
the same time signed by the Powers (including Russia) on
January 17, 1871, recognizing ' that it is an essential
principle of the Law of Nations that no Power can liberate
itself from the engagements of a Treaty, nor modify the
stipulations thereof, unless with the consent of the Con-
tracting Powers by means of an amicable arrangement '.*
The Treaty for the revision of the Black Sea Articles of
the Treaty of 1856 was signed on March 13, i87i.2 Russia,
therefore, gained her ends, or some of them, while the
' essential principle of the Law of Nations ' was vindicated
by the assent of the Powers. The annexation of Bosnia
and Herzegovina by Austria, on October 8, 1908, was in
effect a repudiation of Article XXV of the Treaty of Berlin,
July 13, 1878, although in her circular to the Powers
announcing the annexation, the Austrian Government
simply ignored the existence of the Treaty.
1 Stale Papers, vol. Ixi, p. 1198.
* Ibid., vol. Ixi, p. 7.
12 THE CONCLUSION OF TREATIES
In order to avoid disputes respecting the true interpre-
tation of a treaty when signed in more than one language,
it has occasionally been agreed that in the event of discre-
pancy between the different ' texts ', one or other of them
shall be held to convey the intentions of the negotiators.
Thus, in the Treaty of Peace between Japan and Russia
signed at Portsmouth (United States) on September 5,
1 905,* it was agreed, in Article XV, as follows : ' The
present Treaty shall be signed in duplicate, in both the
English and French languages. The texts are in absolute
conformity, but in case of discrepancy in interpretation,
the French text shall prevail.'
Some commercial treaties are accompanied by a tariff of
import and export duties to be charged on goods by the
respective contracting parties. Others are not accompanied
by any tariff, and depend mainly on the ' most favoured
nation ' articles. A good example of a tariff treaty is that
of 1860 between Great Britain and France,2 generally
associated with the name of Richard Cobden, who was one
of the Plenipotentiaries negotiating it. This treaty re-
mained in force until May 15, 1882, when it was replaced
by the Convention for the regulation of Commercial and
Maritime Relations signed at Paris on February 28, 1882,
which came into operation on May 16. The Treaty of
January 23, 1860, contained an enumeration of articles
upon which an ad valorem duty should be charged, and the
Supplementary Conventions of October 12, i86o,3 and
November 16, 1860,* were accompanied by full tariffs of
import duties on British goods imported into France. The
changes in the duties arranged for in the Treaty of
January 23 were made subject to the consent of the
British Parliament.
The tariffs of 1860 came to an end by the operation of
the Convention of 1882, which declared that the import
1 State Papers, vol xcviii, p. 735. * Ibid., vol. 1, p. 13.
* Ibid., vol. 1, p. 31. * Ibid., vol. 1, p. 48.
TARIFF TREATIES 13
duties should thenceforth be regulated by the internal
legislation of the two countries, while in all other matters
' most favoured nation treatment ' was mutually guaran-
teed. The Convention also dealt with the coasting trade,
fisheries, taxes, residence, shipping, patterns, trade marks,
and other kindred subjects, granting either ' most favoured
nation ' or ' national ' treatment.
Some of these matters, as a rule, form the subject of
separate treaties or agreements. Extradition, for ex-
ample, is almost always treated separately. An Extra-
dition Treaty contains a list of crimes, the commission of
any of which will entail the surrender of the criminal,
and it is usual to insert an article in such a treaty to the
effect that the contracting parties reserve to themselves
the right to refuse to surrender their own nationals : some-
times they declare categorically that they will not surrender
them.
The question of capital punishment (in the case of
murder) has sometimes proved an impediment to the con-
clusion of an Extradition Treaty. Portugal is a case in
point, but in the treaty between Great Britain and that
country of October 17, I8Q2,1 the difficulty was got over
by the acceptance by Great Britain of a reservation in
Article II to the following effect : ' The Portuguese
Government will not deliver up any person either guilty or
accused of any crime punishable with death.' This treaty,
so far as Great Britain was concerned, was therefore in-
complete, because Portugal could retrieve her murderers
from Great Britain, while the latter enjoyed no reciprocity
in this respect. However, the disadvantages were no doubt
deemed to be overbalanced by the advantage of possessing
a workable arrangement in respect of minor crimes, and the
treaty, though one-sided, was concluded.
It may be useful to indicate in a few words the customary
manner of proceeding on the meeting of a Congress or a
1 Stale Papers, vol. Ixxxiv, p 83.
14 THE CONCLUSION OF TREATIES
Conference to discuss international questions with a view
to concluding a treaty for their settlement.
Such meetings, when taking place in London, are almost
invariably held at the Foreign Office,1 and a similar practice
is no doubt followed at other capitals where structural
arrangements permit, the respective Ministries for Foreign
Affairs being the most convenient for purposes of reference
to international documents.
The Paris Conferences in 1856 on the conclusion of the
Crimean War, for instance, were held at the Ministry for
Foreign Affairs. On that occasion, at the first meeting
on February 25, the Austrian Plenipotentiary opened the
proceedings by proposing that the Presidency of the
Conference should be conferred upon Count Walewski,
the first French Plenipotentiary, not only, he said, because
precedents pointed to this course, but also because it
constituted a mark of respect towards the Sovereign whose
hospitality the Representatives of Europe were at that
moment enjoying. This proposal having been unanimously
agreed to, Count Walewski, after thanking the Plenipo-
tentiaries for the honour conferred upon him, proposed
to confide the editing of the protocols of the meetings to
M. Benedetti, the Director of the political affairs of the French
Foreign Office, who was thereupon introduced. The Official
occupying this post is called the ' Protocolist '. The
Plenipotentiaries then proceeded to the verification of
their respective full powers, after which they undertook
to preserve absolute secrecy as to their proceedings in
Conference. Their first business was to declare an armistice
between the late belligerents for the duration of the
Conference.2
Take, again, the London Conferences of 1867 (held at
the Foreign Office) on the question of the Grand Duchy
1 The Conference of London, however, at the conclusion of the
First Balkan War, 1913, was held at the Palace of St. James.
* State Papers, vol. xlvi, p. 63.
PROCEDURE AT CONFERENCES 15
of Luxemburg. At the first meeting the Austrian Plenipo-
tentiary proposed that Lord Stanley, the English Secretary
of State for Foreign Affairs, should be invited to assume
the Presidency of the Conference. Lord Stanley then
proposed Mr. Julian Fane, British Secretary of Embassy at
Paris, as the Protocolist, and he was introduced accordingly.
Then came the verification of the full powers.1
The same course with little variation was adopted at
the London Conference of 1883 respecting the navigation
of the Danube. The German Plenipotentiary at the first
meeting on February 8 proposed Earl Granville, British
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, for the Presidency,
and the latter proposed Mr. J. A. Crowe of the Consular
and Diplomatic Services, as Secretary 2 (no doubt intended
as a synonymous term with Protocolist).
It is to be presumed that these appointments of Officers
are decided by previous understanding amongst the Pleni-
potentiaries, hence that unanimity which is a feature of
the plenary proceedings in this connexion.
Concerning the order of discussions, a similar procedure
may be to some extent adopted. For the rest, a perusal
of a variety of Protocols of Conferences (or Minutes of
Meetings, as they would be called in less important unofficial
circumstances) leads to an impression that discussions are
there conducted much on the lines of a Committee of the
House of Commons when considering a Bill before the House.
Members are not limited to one speech apiece, but rise from
time to time to give voice to their ideas in words many or
few, as the spirit moves them or the complaisance of their
audience can tolerate.
1 State Papers, vol. Ix, p. 497. 2 Ibid., vol. Ixxiv, p. 1231.
CHAPTER II
THE RESTORATION OF EUROPE
The French Revolution — The Revolutionary Wars — The First
Peace of Paris — Speech of the Prince Regent — Congress of
Vienna — The Final Act — The Balance of Power — Poland —
France — Alexander I — The Peace of Ghent — Alliance of Three
States — Italy — Colonies — Navigation of Rivers — Slave trade —
Duration of Vienna Settlement — Holy Alliance — Great Britain —
and the Holy Alliance — Second Peace of Paris.
Texts : The Treaty of Vienna (1815) — Epitome of Annexes.
THE Congress of the European Powers which assembled
at Vienna in the year 1814 was an indirect outcome of
the French Revolution of the previous century, owing to
the devastating wars to which that event gave rise.
The French Revolution is reckoned to have commenced
with the destruction of the Bastille in July 1789. For
some time previously the country, and in particular the
capital, had been in a state of unrest owing, in great
measure, to the unequal taxation of the people, and the
privileges enjoyed in this and other respects by the aristo-
cracy and clergy. Matters having been brought to a head,
the condition of affairs rapidly went from bad to worse.
The King, Louis XVI, professed, and no doubt entertained,
the best intentions for ameliorating the condition of the
people, though there were others who were averse from
all concessions, while on the side of the people there
were many leaders who from various motives were bent
upon pushing matters to a crisis. The intrigues of the
democratic faction were prosecuted with success. Men
and women of the lowest class were instigated to go
to Versailles to demand bread. Riots ensued. The King
submitted to a demand that he should return to Paris,
1903
iS CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
where in due course he virtually became a prisoner. He
escaped with the royal family in 1791, but was recaptured
at Varennes and taken back to the capital, where, though
still ostensibly King, he was entirely in the hands of the
Assembly. Some pourparlers on behalf of the King had
taken place with certain Continental Powers (Austria,
Spain, and others) for military co-operation together with
a royalist army, with a view to the restoration of tranquillity
in France. The original scheme did not mature, but never-
theless a coalition of the Powers against France was effected
in 1792, and the great French War was inaugurated by the
invasion of France by Austrian and Prussian troops. They
were repulsed by the Revolutionary Armies : the Province
of Flanders was seized as well as all the Netherland Pro-
vinces except Luxemburg. Successful operations were also
conducted by the Revolutionary General Custine in Ger-
many. Savoy was also acquired by the French. In Sep-
tember 1792 the French Republic was proclaimed.
The success of Custine in Germany encouraged the
Assembly to aim at further conquests, but its immediate
attention was chiefly devoted to the process against the
deposed representative of the House of Bourbon. It was
proposed that he should be tried for his offences against
the State. Robespierre and others denied the necessity of
a trial, alleging that his criminality was undoubted, and
that immediate condemnation was the proper treatment
for a tyrant. However, the Girondist faction insisted on
a previous inquiry, although they admitted his guilt.
Louis was accordingly tried for treason against the nation,
was condemned to death; and was executed on January 21,
1793. The Queen was beheaded in October of the same
year.
It is easy to understand that the desperate condition of
affairs in France, the anarchy, the massacres, and the
outrages committed in the name of Liberty, Equality, and
Fraternity, alarmed and disconcerted the monarchs and
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 19
governments of neighbouring States, who feared lest the
contagion should spread within their own borders. A
coalition of the Powers against France was therefore not to
be wondered at. Great Britain concluded treaties of
subsidy and alliance against France with several of the
European Powers,1 and hostilities became general. France
declared war against England in 1793, and with the ex-
ception of an interlude of peace of. one year which followed
on the signature of the Treaty of Amiens in 1802, the war
continued until the year 1814. Its character underwent
some change as time went on. The appearance of Napoleon
upon the scene, his elevation to the post of First Consul
in 1799 and to the position of Emperor in 1804, his con-
quests and annexations of various territories, his ambition
to become the arbiter of the affairs of Europe, as he was
certainly the disturber of its peace, resulted finally in
an alliance of the Powers against himself personally.
An invasion of France took place, Paris was surrendered
to the Allies on March 31, 1814, the Bourbon dynasty
was restored in the person of Louis XVIII (Louis XVII
had died a prisoner in France in June 1795, never having
ascended the throne), and Napoleon was deported to
the Island of Elba, where he arrived on May 4, 1814,
Louis having entered Paris on the previous day. It was
then that the ' First Peace of Paris ' was negotiated between
Louis XVIII and the Allies.
This treaty, to which Great Britain, Austria, Portugal,
Prussia, Russia, Spain, Sweden, and France were parties,
was signed at Paris on May 30, i8i4.2
The preamble to the British version (as laid before
Parliament) declared that His Majesty the King of the
1 The subsidy treaties are in G. F. von Martens, Nouveau Rcctieil
de Traitis, vols. v, vii, and Supplemens, vol. v.
1 Separate treaties in identical terms were, in fact, concluded
between France and each of the above-named Allied Powers, all
dated May 30, 1814, with the exception of that with Spain, which
was dated July 20. The whole, together, constitute ' The Treaty
of Paris ', and are to be regarded as one document.
C 2
22 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and his
Allies, on the one part, and His Majesty the King of France
and of Navarre, on the other part, animated by an equal
desire to terminate the long agitations of Europe and the
sufferings of mankind, by a permanent peace, founded upon
a just repartition of force between its States, and containing
in its stipulations the pledge of its durability, &c., had
named Plenipotentiaries to sign a treaty of peace and
amity. The British Plenipotentiaries were Lord Castle-
reagh, Lord Aberdeen, Lord Cathcart, and Sir Charles
Stewart, all of whom, with the French Plenipotentiary,
the Prince de B£neVent, signed the British copy of the
treaty.1
Article I contained the usual peace and friendship stipu-
lation. Article II declared that the limits of France (with
certain modifications) should be the same as they existed
on January i, 1792. Article III particularized these limits
as modified. Article IV dealt with the road connecting
Geneva with other parts of Swiss territory. Article V
stipulated for the free navigation of the Rhine. Article VI
provided for an increase of territory for Holland, for the
independence of the States of Germany and the Government
of Switzerland and Italy. Article VII declared that Malta
should belong in full sovereignty to His Britannic Majesty.
Articles VIII to XI provided for the restoration of certain
colonies to France, and the cession of others to Great
Britain, &c. By Article XII Great Britain guaranteed
most favoured nation treatment in India to French subjects
and commerce, and France undertook to erect no fortifi-
cations on her possessions on the continent of India.
Article XIII replaced French fishery rights in Newfound-
land on the footing of 1792. Article XV dealt with the
disposal of the arsenals and ships of war, &c., found in the
ports of the territories to be evacuated by France, and
further declared Antwerp to be solely a commercial port.
1 Stale Papers, vol. i, p. 151.
24 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
Article XVI secured the non-molestation of individuals for
action taken during the war, and Article XVII provided
that inhabitants of ceded territories should be at liberty,
if they thought fit, to retire to other countries within a
period of six years. By Article XVIII the Allied Govern-
ments renounced all pecuniary claims on France against
a similar renunciation by France. By Article XIX France
undertook to liquidate all debts owing by her beyond her
own territories, and Article XX provided for the execution
by commissioners of the stipulations of the two preceding
Articles. Articles XXI to XXXI had reference to debts,
claims of individuals, Caisses d'Amortissement, pensions,
abolition of the Droits d'Aubaine, restoration of documents
belonging to ceded countries, &c.
Article XXXII ran as follows : ' All the Powers engaged
on either side in the present war shall, within the space
of two months, send Plenipotentiaries to Vienna for the
purpose of regulating, in General Congress, the arrange-
ments which are to complete the provisions of the present
Treaty.'
Article XXXIII contained the usual ratification clause.
Such was the purport of the treaty known as the First
Peace of Paris, to which were added some additional and
secret articles touching the Austrian possessions in Italy,
the territories of Sardinia, the organization of Switzerland,
the acquisition of territory by Holland, the abolition of
the slave trade,1 prisoners of war, claims, the Duchy of
Warsaw, and kindred subjects.
1 The additional Article on the subject of the slave trade runs
as follows : ' His Most Christian Majesty concurring without
reserve in the sentiments of His Britannic Majesty with respect to
a description of traffic repugnant to the principles of natural justice
and of the enlightened age in which we live, engages to unite all his
efforts to those of His Britannic Majesty at the approaching Congress
to induce all the powers of Christendom to decree the abolition of
the Slave Trade, so that the said trade shall cease universally, as
it shall cease definitively, under any circumstances, on the part of
the French Government in the course of five years ; and that during
the said period no Slave Merchant shall import or sell Slaves except
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 25
The Prince Regent of Great Britain, in his speech closing
Parliament on July 30, I8I4,1 said :
I have the satisfaction of contemplating the full accom-
plishment of all those objects for which the war was either
undertaken or continued ; and the unexampled exertions
of this country, combined with those of His Majesty's
Allies, have succeeded in effecting the deliverance of
Europe from the most galling and oppressive tyranny
under which it has ever laboured. The restoration of so
many of the ancient and legitimate Governments of the
Continent affords the best prospect of the permanence of
that Peace which, in conjunction with His Majesty's Allies,
I have concluded : and you may rely on my efforts being
directed at the approaching Congress to complete the settle-
ment of Europe which has been already so auspiciously
begun ; and to promote, upon principles of justice and
impartiality, all those measures which may appear best
calculated to secure the tranquillity and happiness of all
the nations engaged in the late war.
The General Congress stipulated for in Article XXXII
of the Treaty of Paris quoted above met accordingly at
Vienna in September 1814, and concluded its labours on
June 19, 1815, the General Treaty resulting therefrom being
dated June 9, 1815. The British Plenipotentiaries were
Lord Castlereagh, the Duke of Wellington, Lords Clancarty,
Cathcart, and Stewart. Only the three latter signed the
Treaty on behalf of Great Britain, the two former having
been previously recalled from Vienna, the Duke of Welling-
ton in order to take command of the army in the Nether-
lands to oppose Napoleon, who having escaped from Elba
in March, was once more entering upon an armed resistance
to the Allies. The ' Hundred Days ' culminated in Napo-
leon's defeat at Waterloo on June 18, 1815, and his eventual
deportation to St. Helena as a prisoner, where he died in
in the Colonies of the State of which he is a subject.' See also De-
claration of February 8, 1815 (Annex XV to the Congress Treaty of
Vienna), Slate Papers, vol. iii, p. 971. See also Resolutions signed
at Verona, November 28, 1822, State Papers, vol. x, p. 109.
1 Slate Papers, vol. i, p. n.
26 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
1821. Meanwhile, the Treaty of the Congress of Vienna1
was signed by the Plenipotentiaries then remaining at
Vienna, and Louis XVIII, reinstated on the throne, re-
turned to Paris.
The Congress Treaty (generally known as the Final Act
of the Vienna Congress) dealt with many matters concerned
with the ' just repartition of force amongst the States of
Europe ' alluded to in the Preamble of the Treaty of Paris
of May 30, 1814. Some of these matters were not specific-
ally treated of in the last-named treaty, but constituted
the ' arrangements which were to complete ' its provisions.
The Powers represented at the Vienna Congress were Great
Britain, Austria, France, Portugal, Prussia, Russia, Spain,
and Sweden. Spain did not sign the treaty, but she acceded
to it by an Act dated June 7, 1817.
The Congress Treaty was accompanied by seventeen
annexes which really formed part of the principal treaty.
An epitome of them, indicating their nature and contents,
will be found at the end of the treaty (page 95). Some of
them are embodied verbatim or in substance in the treaty.
They are enumerated in Article CXVIII.
The task virtually imposed upon the Powers assembled
in Congress at Vienna, in pursuance of the provisions of the
First Peace of Paris, was the reconstruction of Europe with
a view mainly to the re-establishment of the ' Balance
of Power ' which, in so far as it had ever existed, had been
overthrown by the Napoleonic wars. In the elaboration
of this idea it was inevitable that due weight should be given
to considerations of expediency and compromise. The
Congress had, in fact, to reconstruct a Continent which
had undergone many changes during a period of twenty
years. In the process of reconstruction the principle of
legitimism was adopted by the Congress, and this served
to eliminate certain discordant elements. Still Poland
and Saxony and German nationalism continued to present
1 State Papers, vol. ii, p. 3.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 27
difficulties. Russia sought compensation in Poland in
return for her sacrifices ; Prussia looked for compensa-
tion from Saxony ; Austria, on the other hand, was dis-
inclined to concede to Prussia too great a preponderance
in Germany ; while England and France were jealous of
the aggrandizement of Russia. In the end a compromise
was effected, each party relinquishing a portion of its claims.
The doctrine of expediency and compromise is further
illustrated by Article I of the Congress Treaty, which deals
with Poland, and was said to have emanated directly from
the Emperor Alexander I of Russia. In a correspondence
between Great Britain and Russia in 1863, on the existing
rebellion in Poland and the failure of Russia to carry out
the promised reforms in that country, there appears a
dispatch from Earl Russell to the British Ambassador at
the Court of the Tsar alluding to the course adopted at the
Congress in the matter. ' In 1815,' his Lordship wrote,
' Great Britain, Austria, France, and Prussia would have
preferred to the arrangement finally made, a restoration of
the ancient Kingdom of Poland as it existed prior to the
first partition of 1772, or even the establishment of a new
independent Kingdom of Poland, with the same limits as
the present Kingdom. The great army which the Emperor
Alexander then had in Poland, the important services
which Russia had rendered to the Alliance, and, above all,
a fear of the renewal of war in Europe, combined to make
Great Britain, Austria, and Prussia accept the arrangement
proposed by the Emperor Alexander, although it was, in
their eyes, of the three arrangements in contemplation
the one least likely to produce permanent peace and
security in Europe.' l
The fear of a renewal of war was by no means unwar-
ranted. The conflicting interests of the principal Powers
manifested themselves in the preliminary discussions which
took place prior to the meeting of the full Congress.
1 State Papers, vol. liii, p. 914.
28 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
The four Powers, Great Britain, Austria, Prussia, and
Russia, had, prior to the negotiation of the Peace of Paris
of 1814, come to an agreement regarding certain points
connected with the reconstruction of Europe, but regarding
others, e. g. Poland, Prussia, and Saxony, their views were
antagonistic. This seems to have been the reason for the
course then adopted, namely to confine the negotiations
at Paris to matters in which France was more particularly
concerned, and to which she must agree in advance, rele-
gating to a future Congress the consideration of those which
promised to give rise to controversy. They could not
exclude France from all participation in the Congress, but
they sought to contrive a state of things under which the
French Plenipotentiary should proceed to Vienna with his
pen and the seal of his arms ready to affix his signature at
the foot of an agreement already elaborated by the four
Powers before his arrival.
Preliminary conferences took place at Vienna, to which
Talleyrand, overcoming the opposition of the ' Allies ',
succeeded in gaining admittance ; but much difficulty was
experienced in relation to Poland. The Emperor Alexander
offered Saxony to Prussia, Venice to Austria, but was for
a long time obstinate on the subject of Poland, intimating
on one occasion that he had 200,000 men in the Duchy of
Warsaw, and inviting the Powers to turn him out. The
date for the meeting of the plenary Congress was again and
again postponed. People became anxious, asking whether
Europe was about to recommence a war for the division
of the spoils of Napoleon. In this state of affairs it was
agreed (October 30, 1814) that although questions of
importance were still pending, there was nothing to prevent
the verification of the Full Powers of the Plenipotentiaries
being entered on at once. This was done, and committees
were appointed for the consideration of the less contro-
versial of the subjects under discussion, one of them for
German affairs in which Austria, Prussia, Bavaria, Hanover,
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 29
and Wurtemberg were represented, and another for the
affairs of Switzerland in which Great Britain, Austria,
Prussia, and Russia took part.
The Congress met to arrange for the verification of the
Full Powers on October 30, iSi.4.1
In the meantime the Emperor Alexander had receded
somewhat from the position previously taken up by him,
partly owing to the tenacity-of Prussia, who argued that
she had been promised not only reinstatement but an
augmentation of territory. She suggested that Saxony
might, for instance, be transferred to a portion of the
vacant country on the left bank of the Rhine, with Bonn
as the capital and the Moselle as the boundary, whilst she,
Prussia, should take the territory bordering on the French
frontier. Alexander, not seeing his way to the acquisition
of the whole of the Duchy of Warsaw, and becoming aware
that he must give up his demand for the cession of Galicia
by Austria, modified his views rather than risk a renewal
of war. He agreed that Prussia should take part of Saxony
and the province of Posen, giving up her share of the par-
tition of 1795, namely Warsaw. England and Austria
being disposed to countenance the plan, negotiations were
entered into on this basis.
It is therefore apparent that although the Powers
assembled in Congress were not on the whole unmindful
of the general interests of Europe, some of them were
nevertheless keenly alive to their own particular interests
which they pressed to the verge of war. These conflicting
interests had a depressing effect on the Congress, and the
progress made was very slow. The Peace between Great
Britain and the United States,2 however, tended to increase
the weight of British influence in the Congress, inasmuch
as she was thereby enabled to avail herself of the whole of
her military resources. The news of this Peace having
1 State Papers, vol. ii, p. 563.
* Signed at Ghent, December 24, 1814; State Papers, vol. ii, p. 357.
30 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
reached Lord Castlereagh at Vienna on January i, 1815,
Talleyrand, the French Plenipotentiary, concerted with
him with a view to common action, with the result that
on January 3 a Treaty of Defensive Alliance was concluded
between Great Britain, France, and Austria,1 wherein the
contracting parties reciprocally engaged to act in concert,
with perfect impartiality and in complete good faith, to
ensure that in execution of the Treaty of Paris the arrange-
ments for completing its provisions be effected in a manner
most conformable to the true spirit of that treaty. It went
on to declare that if, in carrying out their policy thus indi-
cated, an attack should be made on the possessions of one
of the parties, the others, failing to effect an amicable inter-
vention, would come to the assistance of the one attacked
with all their available forces. Other stipulations of detail
followed. The effect of this treaty was at once apparent,
and all danger of war immediately vanished. In the course
of February the Congress agreed to the re-establishment
of the King of Saxony on his throne, this monarch at the
same time renouncing all claim to the Duchy of Warsaw,
and ceding a part of his kingdom to Prussia. The Congress
also agreed to the retention by Austria of the portion
of Eastern Galicia ceded to Warsaw in 1809 : to the
surrender by Prussia of parts of Poland while retaining
the Grand Duchy of Posen, and receiving Swedish Pome-
rania, a portion of Saxony, the Rhine provinces, and terri-
tories on the right bank of the Rhine : and to the constitu-
tion of Poland as a kingdom under the sceptre of the Emperor
of Russia. Thus the most difficult of the questions at issue
were solved.
On Napoleon's return to France, Murat, King of Naples,
failing to rouse the Italians, was defeated by the Austrians :
Naples surrendered and Murat fled : Ferdinand was
recalled as King of the Two Sicilies, and was recognized by
the Vienna Congress. The task of settling the affairs of
1 State Papers, vol. ii, p. 1001.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 31
Italy became comparatively easy. Venice and Lombardy
were left with Austria, the Legations restored to the Pope,
the duchies to Austrian archdukes, Parma going to Marie
Louise of Austria, Napoleon's wife.
The French colonial possessions were dealt with in the
Treaty of Paris of May 30, 1814, under which some were
restored, and others retained by Great Britain. The resto-
ration of the Dutch colonies captured by Great Britain,
with the exception of the Cape of Good Hope and Demarara,
&c., was arranged for in the Convention between Great
Britain and the Netherlands of August 13, I8I4.1 These
questions were settled independently of the Vienna Con-
gress. The Constitution of the Germanic Confederation
was primarily settled by a committee of German repre-
sentatives appointed by the Congress and was embodied
in the Congress Treaty, to which the Constitution was itself
attached as Annex IX.2
The Treaty of Paris, 1814 (Article V), in stipulating for the
free navigation of the Rhine, committed to the future Con-
gress the consideration of the details for giving effect to that
stipulation, as well as its extension to other international
rivers. Articles CVIII to CXVII of the Congress Treaty
therefore laid down the principles which should regulate
international rivers, viz. freedom of navigation to every one
throughout the entire navigable course, subject to police
regulations: uniform system of collecting duties and regula-
tion of tariff with a view to the encouragement of trade and
navigation : repairs of towing-paths by each riverain state ;
no port or forced harbour dues : general arrangement to be
come to. This arrangement is embodied in the Regulations
of March i8i5.3
The article touching the abolition of the slave trade was
1 State Papers, vol. ii, p. 370.
* The Treaty of Paris, 1814 (Article VI), declared that theStates of
Germany should be independent, and united by a Federative Bond.
* See Regulations, March 1815. These form Annex XVI to tho
Congress Treaty. State Papers, vol. ii, p. 162.
32 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
introduced into the Treaty of Paris at the instance of Great
Britain, and it formed Article I of the additional articles
between Great Britain and France.1 In it the French King
engaged ' to unite all his efforts to those of His Britannic
Majesty, at the approaching Congress, to induce all the
Powers of Christendom to decree the abolition of the Slave
Trade ', &c.
A good deal of correspondence passed between the Powers
both at Paris and subsequently at Vienna on this subject.
There was much opposition in France and in the French
Chambers to the abolition of the traffic, although the
Government expressed themselves anxious to do their
utmost to accomplish it. With Spain matters were more
difficult, as it was deemed that the abolition would result
in the ruin of the Spanish colonies : the King, however,
promised to consider what could be done consistently with
the requirements of these possessions. Portugal engaged
to take steps for the gradual extinction of the trade and
its immediate limitation to certain localities. At Vienna
Lord Castlereagh had audience of the Emperors of Russia
and Austria and the King of Prussia, all of whom undertook
to use their influence to bring about the abolition of the
trade. The question was debated in Congress on the i6th,
20th, and 28th January, and the 4th and 8th February,
1815, the Plenipotentiaries of all the eight Powers being
present.2 The desirability of the abolition of the slave
trade was unanimously agreed to ' in principle '. The time
for its total abolition remained in dispute. Great Britain
hinted at the possibility of the exclusion from her ports
of the produce of slave labour until the discontinuance of
the traffic ; Spain and Portugal foreshadowed a resort to
reprisals in such an eventuality. A compromise was finally
effected, and a Declaration was signed on February 8 to
the effect that the Powers, whilst sincerely desirous of
1 State Papers, vol. ii, p. 172.
8 Ibid., vol. iii, p. 949.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 33
putting a stop as soon as possible to the traffic in slaves,
recognized that this general declaration could not lay down
beforehand the exact period which each particular Power
might judge to be the most convenient for its definitive
cessation : therefore the fixing of that period must be the
subject of negotiations between the several Powers.1 This
Declaration was attached to the Congress Treaty as
Annex XV.
The slave trade question was further developed at the
Congress of Verona in i823.2
These various matters were settled by the Plenipoten-
tiaries in Congress to the best of their abilities, and they
constituted the best available arrangement for ensuring
the Balance of Power and the permanency of the Peace.
The territorial distribution was not destined nor probably
expected to be durable for all time, but much of it lasted
for more than a generation. In 1830 the blending of Holland
and Belgium proved a failure, and by the Treaties of 1831
and 1839 the connexion between the two was severed. In
1859 the Balance of Power was disturbed, and Lombardy
and the duchies were wrested from Austria and added to
the Sardinian Crown, which also acquired Sicily a little
later on and the Papal territories. In 1864 Denmark was
dismembered and the Elbe duchies seized by Austria and
Prussia. In 1866 the Germanic Confederation was abolished
and the North German Confederation (to the exclusion of
Austria) was set up in its place, while Austria was further
deprived of the Lombardo- Venetian kingdom, which was
added to Sardinia. Sardinia then became the Kingdom of
Italy. In 1870 the Balance of Power was further disturbed,
and the German States (again to the exclusion of Austria)
formed themselves into a German Empire, and destroyed
the pre-existing boundaries of France by the annexation
• State Papers, vol. iii, p. 971.
* Ibid., vol. x, pp. 89-110.
1903
34 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
of Alsace and Lorraine. In 1905 the union between Sweden
and Norway was dissolved.
To this extent the arrangements elaborated at the Vienna
Congress have in the course of years had to give way to
popular or autocratic pressure which could probably not
have been foreseen or usefully counteracted at the time.
It was perhaps with a view to strengthening the work of
the Congress that the sovereigns of Austria, Prussia, and
Russia on September 26, 1815, concluded at Paris the
treaty commonly called the ' Holy Alliance '.*
In this somewhat unusual document it was intimated as
a preliminary statement that
Their Majesties the Emperor of Austria, the King of
Prussia, and the Emperor of Russia having, in conse-
quence of the great events which have occurred in the
course of the three last years in Europe, and especially
of the blessings which it has pleased Divine Providence
to shower down upon those States which place their con-
fidence and their hope on it alone, acquired the intimate
conviction of the necessity of settling the steps to be
observed by the Powers, in their reciprocal relations,
upon the sublime truths which the Holy Religion of our
Saviour teaches ; They solemnly declare that the present
Act has no other object than to publish in the face of
the whole world their fixed resolution, both in the
administration of their respective States and in their
political relations with every other Government, to take
for their sole guide the precepts of that Holy Religion,
namely the precepts of Justice, Christian Charity and
Peace, which far from being applicable only to private
concerns must have an immediate influence on the
Councils of Princes and guide all their steps as being the
only means of consolidating human institutions and
remedying their imperfections. In consequence Their
Majesties have agreed upon the following articles.2
Article I declared that
Conformably to the words of the Holy Scriptures which
command all men to consider each other as brethren, the
1 State Papers, vol. iii, p. 211. l Ibid.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 35
three contracting Monarchs will remain united by the
bonds of a true and indissoluble fraternity, and consider-
ing each other as fellow countrymen, they will on all
occasions and in all places lend each other aid and assis-
tance ; and regarding themselves towards their subjects
and armies as fathers of families, they will lead them in
the same spirit of fraternity with which they are ani-
mated, to protect Religion, Peace and Justice.
Article II says :
In consequence, the sole principle of force, whether
between the said Governments or between their subjects,
shall be that of doing each other reciprocal service, and
of testifying by unalterable goodwill the mutual affec-
tion with which they ought to be animated, to consider
themselves all as members of one and the same Christian
nation ; the three allied Princes looking on themselves
as merely delegated by Providence to govern three
branches of the One family, namely Austria, Prussia
and Russia, thus confessing that the Christian world of
which they and their people form a part has in reality
no other Sovereign than Him to whom alone power really
belongs. . . .Their Majesties consequently recommend to
their people, with the most tender solicitude, as the sole
means of enjoying that peace which arises from a good
conscience, and which alone is durable, to strengthen
themselves every day more and more in the principles
and exercise of the duties which the Divine Saviour has
taught to mankind.
Article III, and last, invited all the Powers who avowed
the sacred principles indicated to join in this Holy Alliance.
It is stated in Martens' Recueil de Traites l that the
greater part of the Christian Powers acceded to this treaty.
France acceded to it in 1815 ; the Netherlands and Wur-
temberg did so in 1816 ; and Saxony, Switzerland, and
the Hanse Towns in 1817. But neither the Pope nor the
Sultan were invited to accede.2
1 See Note on p. 319 of Hertslct's Map of Europe by Treaty.
1 In view of the frequent references to Christianity in the treaty,
the exclusion of the Sultan is less surprising than that of the Pope
D 2
36 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
The accession of Great Britain to the Holy Alliance was
invited by the signatories in a royal letter to the Prince
Regent in which the object of the compact was again set
forth, and a copy of the treaty enclosed. The Prince Regent
replied in a similar letter to the three Sovereigns, in which
His Royal Highness stated his entire concurrence in the
principles they had laid down of making the Divine Pre-
cepts of the Christian religion the invariable rule of their
conduct, maxims which he would himself endeavour to
practice, whilst co-operating with his august allies in all
measures which might be likely to contribute to the
peace and happiness of mankind ; but His Royal High-
ness intimated that the forms of the British Constitu-
tion precluded him from acceding formally to the treaty
in the shape in which it had been presented to him.1
This did not of course constitute an accession to the
treaty.
It was mainly on the strength of the Holy Alliance that
the three monarchs met in Conference at Troppau and at
Laibach in 1820 and 1821, when they decided to intervene
forcibly for the suppression of the revolution then con-
vulsing Naples. Great Britain stood aloof from these pro-
ceedings and withheld its approval, on the principle of non-
intervention in the internal affairs of a foreign country
unless under special circumstances threatening the safety
of the intervenor.
The stipulations of the Act of Vienna and of the First
Peace of Paris were modified by the Treaty of November 20,
1815, known as the Second Peace of Paris,2 necessitated by
the Napoleonic adventure of the Hundred Days. It was
therein declared that the boundaries of France should be
the same as in 1790 * with certain modifications. France
was thus mulcted in certain small portions of territory.
1 State Papers, vol. iii, p. 212. * Ibid., p. 280.
* Instead of 1792 as stipulated in the First Peace of Paris.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 37
She was also condemned to a payment of 700,000,000 francs,
the territory and the money together constituting a war
indemnity.
GENERAL TREATY BETWEEN GREAT BRITAIN, AUSTRIA,
FRANCE, PORTUGAL, PRUSSIA, RUSSIA, SPAIN, AND
SWEDEN. — Signed at Vienna, gth June, I8I5.1
English Version as presented to Parliament.
In the Name of the Most Holy and Undivided Trinity.
The Powers who signed the Treaty concluded at Paris on
the 30th of May, 1814, having assembled at Vienna, in
pursuance of Article XXXII of that Act, with the Princes
and States their Allies, to complete the provisions of the
said Treaty, and to add to them the arrangements rendered
necessary by the state in which Europe was left at the
termination of the last war ; being now desirous to embrace,
in one common transaction, the various results of their
negotiations, for the purpose of confirming them by their
reciprocal Ratifications, have* authorised their Plenipoten-
tiaries to unite, in a general Instrument, the regulations of
superior and permanent interest, and to join to that Act,
as integral parts of the arrangements of Congress, the
Treaties, Conventions, Declarations, Regulations, and other
particular Acts, as cited in the present Treaty. And the
above-mentioned Powers having appointed Plenipoten-
tiaries to the Congress, that is to say : —
[Here follow the names of the Plenipotentiaries.]
Such of the above Plenipotentiaries as have assisted at
the close of the negotiations, after having produced their
full powers, found in good and due form, have agreed to
place in the said general Instrument the following Articles,
and to affix to them their signatures : —
Arrangements respecting the ancient Duchy of Warsaw.
ARTICLE I. The Duchy of Warsaw, with the exception
of the provinces and districts which are otherwise disposed
of by the following Articles, is united to the Russian
Empire. It shall be irrevocably attached to it by its Con-
stitution, and be possessed by His Majesty the Emperor of
1 The original French version is in State Papers, vol. ii, p. 3.
38 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
all the Russias, his heirs and successors in perpetuity. His
Imperial Majesty reserves to himself to give to this State,
enjoying a distinct administration, the interior improve-
ment which he shall judge proper. He shall assume with
his other titles that of Czar, King of Poland, agreeably to
the form established for the titles attached to his other
possessions.
The Poles, who are respective subjects of Russia, Austria,
and Prussia, shall obtain a Representation and National
Institutions, regulated according to the degree of political
consideration, that each of the Governments to which they
belong shall judge expedient and proper to grant them.1
Boundaries of the Grand Duchy of Posen.
ARTICLE II. The part of the Duchy of Warsaw which
His Majesty the King of Prussia shall possess in full sove-
reignty and property, for himself, his heirs, and successors,
under the title of the Grand Duchy of Posen, shall be com-
prised within the following line : —
Proceeding from the frontier of Eastern Prussia to the
village of Neuhoff, the new limit shall follow the frontier
of Western Prussia, such as it subsisted from 1772 to the
Peace of Tilsit2 to the villa'ge of Leibitsch, which shall
belong to the Duchy of Warsaw ; from thence shall be
drawn a line, which, leaving Kompania, Grabowiec, and
Szczytno to Prussia, passes the Vistula, near the last-
mentioned place, from the other side of the river, which
falls into the Vistula opposite Szczytno, to the ancient
limit of the district of the Netze, near Gross-Opoczko, so
that Sluzewo shall belong to the Duchy, and Przy-
branowa, Hollaender, and Maciejevo, to Prussia. From
Gross-Opoczko it shall pass by Chlewiska, which shall re-
main to Prussia, to the village of Przybyslaw, and from
thence by the villages of Piaski, Chelmce, Witowiczki,
Kobylinka, Woyczyn, Orchowo, to the town of Powidz.
From Powidz it shall continue by the town of Slupce
1 By a Russian Manifesto of February 14/26, 1832, the Kingdom of
Poland was declared to be perpetually united to the Russian Empire,
and to form an integral part thereof. The British Government
protested against this Manifesto on July 3, 1832, as being an
infraction of the Vienna Congress Treaty. (See Hertslet's Map of
Europe by Treaty, vol. i, p. 94, footnote.)
* Treaty of Tilsit, 1807.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 39
to the point of confluence of the rivers Wartha and
Prosna.
From this point it shall reascend the course of the river
Prosna to the village of Koscielnawies, to within one league
of the town of Kahsch.
Then leaving to that town (on the side of the left bank
of the Prosna), a semi-circular territory measured by the
distance from Koscielnawies to Kalisch, the line shall
return to the course of the Prosna, and shall continue to
follow it, reascending by the towns of Grabow, Wieruszow,
Boleslawiec, so as to terminate near the village of Gola,
upon the frontier of Silesia, opposite Pitschin.
Salt-Mines of Wieliczka.
ARTICLE III. His Imperial and Royal Apostolic Majesty
shall possess, in full property and sovereignty, the salt-
mines of Wieliczka, and the territory thereto belonging.
Boundaries between Galicia and Russia.
ARTICLE IV. The way or bed (Thalweg) of the Vistula
shall separate Galicia from the territory of the Free Town
of Cracow. It shall serve at the same time as the frontier
between Galicia and that part of the ancient Duchy of
Warsaw united to the States of His Majesty the Emperor
of all the Russias, as far as the vicinity of the town of
Zavichost.
From Zavichost to the Bug, the dry frontiers shall be
determined by the line drawn in the Treaty of Vienna of
1809, excepting such modifications as by common consent
may be thought necessary to be introduced.
The frontier from the Bug shall be re-established on this
side (de ce cute) between the two Empires, such as it was
before the said Treaty.
Restitution of Districts separated from Eastern Galicia.
ARTICLE V. His Majesty the Emperor of all the Russias
cedes to His Imperial and Royal Apostolic Majesty the
districts which have been separated from Eastern Galicia,
in consequence of the Treaty of Vienna of iSog,1 from the
1 Extract from the Treaty of Peace between Austria and France. —
Vienna, 14 Oct. 1809: Art. Ill § 5. His Majesty the Emperor
of Austria cedes to His Majesty the Emperor of Russia, in the
40 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
Circles of Zloczow, Brzezan, Tarnopol, and Zalesczyk, and
the frontiers on this side (de ce cote) shall be re-established,
such as they were before the date of the said Treaty.
Cracow declared a Free Town.
ARTICLE VI. The Town of Cracow, with its Territory,
is declared to be for ever a Free, Independent, and strictly
Neutral City, under the Protection of Austria, Russia, and
Prussia.
Boundaries of the Territory of Cracow.
ARTICLE VII. The territory of the Free Town of Cracow
shall have for its frontier upon the left bank of the Vistula
a line, which, beginning at the spot near the village of
Wolica, where a stream falls into the Vistula, shall ascend
this stream by Cio, and Koscielniki as far as Czulice, so
that these villages may be included in the district of the
Free Town of Cracow ; from thence passing along the
frontiers of these. villages the line shall continue by Dzic-
kanovice, Garlice, Tomaszow, Karniowice, which shall also
remain in the territory of Cracow, to the point where the
limit begins which separates the district of Krzeszovice
from that of Olkusz ; from thence it shall follow this limit
between the two said provinces, till it reaches the frontiers
of Silesian Prussia.
Privileges granted to Podgorze.
ARTICLE VIII. His Majesty the Emperor of Austria,
wishing particularly to facilitate as much as possible on his
part, the commercial relations, and good neighbourhood
between Galicia and the Free Town of Cracow, grants for
ever to the town of Podgorze, the privileges of a Free
Commercial Town, such as are enjoyed by the town of
Brody. This liberty of commerce shall extend to a distance
of 500 toises from the barrier of the suburbs of the town of
Podgorze.
In consequence of this perpetual concession, which never-
theless shall not affect the rights of sovereignty of His
Imperial and Royal Apostolic Majesty, the Austrian custom-
Easternmost portion of Ancient Gallicia, a territory comprising a
population of 400,000 souls, in which the town of Brody shall not
be included. This territory shall be amicably delimited by Commis-
sioners of the two Empires.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 41
houses shall be established only in places situated beyond
that limit. No military establishment shall be formed that
can menace the Neutrality of Cracow, or obstruct the liberty
of commerce which His Imperial and Royal Apostolic
Majesty grants to the town and district of Podgorze.
Neutrality of Cracow.
ARTICLE IX. The Courts of Russia, Austria, and Prussia
engage to respect, and to cause to be always respected, the
Neutrality of the Free Town of Cracow and its Territory.
No armed force shall be introduced upon any pretence
whatever.
On the other hand it is understood and expressly stipu-
lated that no asylum shall be afforded in the Free Town and
territory of Cracow to fugitives, deserters, and persons under
prosecution, belonging to the country' of either of the High
Powers aforesaid ; and in the event of the demand of their
surrender by the competent authorities, such individuals
shall be arrested and given up without delay, and conveyed,
under a proper escort, to the guard appointed to receive
them at the frontier.
'Constitution, Academy, and Bishopric of Cracow.
ARTICLE X. The dispositions of the Constitution of the
Free Town of Cracow, concerning the Academy, the
Bishopric, and Chapter of that town, such as they are
specified in Articles VII, XV, XVI, and XVII of the
Additional Treaty relative to Cracow, which is annexed to
the present General Treaty, shall have the same force and
validity as if they were textually inserted in this Act.
General Amnesty in Poland.
ARTICLE XI. A full, general, and special Amnesty shall
be granted in favour of all individuals, of whatever rank,
sex, or condition they may be.
Sequestrations removed.
ARTICLE XII. In consequence of the preceding Article,
no person in future shall be prosecuted or disturbed, in
any manner, by reason of any participation, direct or in-
direct, at any time, in the political, civil, or military events
42 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
in Poland. All proceedings, suits, or prosecutions are con-
sidered as null, the sequestrations and provisional conns-
cations shall be taken off, and every Act promulgated on
this ground shall be of no effect.
Exception to preceding Article.
ARTICLE XIII. From these general regulations on the
subject of confiscation are excepted all those cases in which
edicts or sentences, finally pronounced, have already been
fully executed, and have not been annulled by subsequent
events.
Free Navigation of Rivers in Poland.
ARTICLE XIV. The principles established for the free
navigation of Rivers and Canals, in the whole extent of
ancient Poland, as well as for the trade to the ports, for
the circulation of articles the growth and produce of the
different Polish provinces, and for the commerce, relative
to goods in transitu, such as they are specified in Articles
XXIV, XXV, XXVI, XXVIII, and XXIX of the Treaty
between Austria and Russia, and in Articles XXII, XXIII,
XXIV, XXV, XXVIII, and XXIX of the Treaty between
Russia and Prussia, shall be invariably maintained.
Cessions by the King of Saxony to the King of Prussia.
ARTICLE XV. His Majesty the King of Saxony renounces
in perpetuity for himself, and all his descendants and
successors, in favour of His Majesty the King of Prussia,
all his right and title to the provinces, districts, and terri-
tories, or parts of territories, of the Kingdom of Saxony,
hereafter named ; and His Majesty the King of Prussia
shall possess those countries in complete sovereignty and
property, and shall unite them to his Monarchy. The
districts and territories thus ceded shall be separated from
the rest of the Kingdom of Saxony by a line, which hence-
forth shall form the frontier between the Prussian and Saxon
territories, so that all that is comprised in the limit formed
by this line shall be restored to His Majesty the King of
Saxony ; but His Majesty renounces all those districts and
territories that are situated beyond that line, and which
belonged to him before the war.
The line shall begin from the frontiers of Bohemia, near
Wiese, in the neighbourhood of Seidenberg, following the
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 43
stream of the River Wittich, until its junction with the
Neisse.
From the Neisse it shall pass to the Circle of Eigen,
between Tauchritz, which shall belong to Prussia, and
Bertschoff, which shall remain to Saxony ; then it shall
follow the northern frontier of the Circle of Eigen, to the
angle between Paulsdorf and Ober-Sohland ; thence it shall
be continued to the limits that separate the Circle of
Gortitz from that of Bautzen, in such a manner that Ober,
Mittel and Nieder Sohland, Olisch, and Radewitz remain
in the possession of Saxony.
The great post road between Gorlitz and Bautzen shall
belong to Prussia, as far as the limits of the said Circles.
Then the line shall follow the frontier of the Circle to
Dubrauke ; it shall then extend upon the heights to the
right of the Lobauer-Wasser, so that this rivulet, with its
two banks, and the places upon them, as far as Neudorf,
shall remain, with this village, to Saxony.
The line shall then fall again upon the Spree, and the
Schwarzwasser ; Liska, Hermsdorf, Ketten, and Solchdorf
are assigned to Prussia.
From the Schwarz-Elster, near Solchdorf, a right line
shall be drawn to the frontier of the Lordship of Konigs-
bruck, near Gross-graebchen. This lordship remains to
Saxony, and the line shall follow its northern boundary as
far as the Bailiwick of Grossenhayn, in the neighbourhood
of Ortrand. Ortrand, and the road from that place by
Merzdorf, Stolzenhayn, Grobeln, and Miihlberg (with the
villages on that road, so that no part of it remain beyond
the Prussian territory) shall be under the Government of
Prussia. The frontier from Grobeln shall be traced to the
Elbe near Fichtenberg, and then shall follow the Bailiwick
of Miihlberg. Fichtenberg shall be the property of Prussia.
From the Elbe to the frontier of the country of Merse-
burg, it shall be so regulated that the Bailiwicks of Torgau,
Eilenburg, and Delitsch, shall pass to Prussia, while those
of Oschatz, Wurzen, and Leipsic, shall remain to Saxony.
The line shall follow the frontier of these bailiwicks, dividing
some inclosures and demi-inclosures. The road from Miihl-
berg to Eilenburg shall be wholly within the Prussian
territory.
From Podelwitz (belonging to the Bailiwick of Leipsic,
and remaining to Saxony) as far as Eytra, which also re-
44 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
mains to her, the line shall divide the country of Merseburg
in such a manner that Breitenfeld, Haenichen, Gross
and Klein-Dolzig, Mark-Ranstadt and Knaut-Nauendorf,
remain to Saxony ; and Modelwitz, Skenditz, Klein-Lie-
benau, Alt-Ranstadt, Schkoehlen, and Zietschen, pass to
Prussia.
From thence the line shall divide the Bailiwick of Pegau
between the Floss-graben 'and the Weisse-Elster ; the
former, from the point where it separates itself above the
town of Crossen (which forms part of the Bailiwick of
Haynsburg) from the Weisse-Elster to the point where it
joins the Saale> below the town of Merseburg, shall belong,
in its whole course between those two towns, with both its
banks, to the Prussian territory.
From thence, where the frontier touches upon that of
the country of Zeitz, the line shall follow it as far as the
boundary of the country of Altenburg, near Luckau.
The frontiers of the Circle of Neustadt, which wholly falls
under the dominion of Prussia, remain untouched.
The inclosures of Voigtland, in the district of Reuss, that
is to say Gef all, Blintendorf , Sparenberg, and Blankenberg,
are comprised in the share of Prussia.
Titles to be assumed by the King of Prussia.
ARTICLE XVI. The provinces and districts of the King-
dom of Saxony, which are transferred to the dominion of
His Majesty the King of Prussia, shall be distinguished by
the name of the Duchy of Saxony, and His Majesty shall
add to his Titles those of Duke of Saxony, Landgrave of
Thuringia, Margrave of the two Lusatias, and Count of
Henneberg.
His Majesty the King of Saxony shall continue to bear
the title of Margrave of Upper Lusatia.
His Majesty shall also continue, with relation to, and in
virtue of his right of eventual succession to the possessions
of the Ernestine branch, to bear the title of Landgrave of
Thuringia and Count of Henneberg.
Guarantee of the Cessions indicated in Article XV.
ARTICLE XVII. Austria, Russia, Great Britain, and
France guarantee to His Majesty the King of Prussia, his
descendants and successors, the possession of the countries
marked out in Article XV, in full property and sovereignty.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 45
Renunciation by the Emperor of Austria of Rights of
Sovereignty over Lusatia.
ARTICLE XVIII. His Imperial and Royal Apostolic
Majesty, wishing to give to the King of Prussia a fresh
proof of his desire to remove every object of future discus-
sion between their two Courts, renounces for himself and
his successors his rights of Sovereignty over the Margra-
viates of Upper and Lower Lusatia, which belonged to him
as King of Bohemia, as far as these rights concern the
portion of these provinces placed under the dominion of
His Majesty the King of Prussia by virtue of the Treaty
with His Majesty the King of Saxony, concluded at Vienna
on the i8th May, 1815.
As to the right of reversion of His Imperial and Royal
Apostolic Majesty to the said portion of the Lusatias united
to Prussia, it is transferred to the House of Brandenburg
now reigning in Prussia, His Imperial and Royal Apostolic
Majesty reserving to himself and his successors, the power
of resuming that right in the event of the extinction of the
said reigning House.
His Imperial and Royal Apostolic Majesty renounces also
in favour of His Prussian Majesty, the districts of Bohemia
inclosed within the part of Upper Lusatia ceded by the
Treaty of the i8th May, 1815, to his Prussian Majesty,
which districts comprehend the places of Giintersdorf,
Taubentraenke, Neukretschen, Nieder-Gerlachsheim, Win-
kel, and Ginkel, with their territories.
Reciprocal Renunciation of Feudal Rights.
ARTICLE XIX. His Majesty the King of Prussia and
His Majesty the King of Saxony, wishing particularly to
remove every object of future contest or dispute, renounce,
each on his own part, and reciprocally in favour of one
another, all feudal rights or pretensions which they might
exercise or might have exercised beyond the frontiers fixed
by the present Treaty.
Reciprocal Freedom of Emigration.
ARTICLE XX. His Majesty the King of Prussia promises
to direct that proper care be taken relative to whatever
may affect the property and interests of the respective
subjects, upon the most liberal principles.
46 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
The present Article shall be observed, particularly with
regard to the concerns of those individuals who possess
property both under the Prussian and Saxon Govern-
ments, to the commerce of Leipsic, and to all other objects
of the same nature ; and in order that the individual liberty
of the inhabitants, both of the ceded and other provinces,
may not be infringed, they shall be allowed to emigrate
from one territory to the other, without being exempted,
however, from military service, and after fulfilling the
formalities required by the laws. They may also remove
their property without being subject to any fine or drawback
(Abzugsgeld).
Property of Religious Establishments.
ARTICLE XXI. The communities, corporations, and re-
ligious establishments, and those for public instruction in
the provinces ceded by His Majesty the King of Saxony
to Prussia, or in the provinces and districts remaining to
His Saxon Majesty, shall preserve their property, whatever
changes they may undergo, as well as the rents becoming
due to them, according to the act of their foundation, or
which they have acquired by a legal title since that period
under the Prussian and Saxon Governments ; and neither
party shall interfere in the administration and in the col-
lection of the revenues, provided that they be conducted
in a manner conformable to the laws, and that the charges
be defrayed, to which all property or rents of the like
nature are subjected, in the territory in which they occur.
General Amnesty in Saxony.
ARTICLE XXII. No individual domiciliated in the pro-
vinces which are under the dominion of His Majesty the
King of Saxony, any more than an individual domiciliated
in those which by the present Treaty pass under the
dominion of the King of Prussia, shall be molested in his
person, his property, rents, pensions, or revenues of any
kind, in his rank or dignities, nor be prosecuted or called
to account in any manner for any part which he, either in
a civil or military capacity, may have taken in the events
that have occurred since the commencement of the war,
terminated by the Peace concluded at Paris on the 30th of
May, 1814.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 47
This Article equally extends to those who, not being
domiciliated in either part of Saxony, may possess in it
landed property, rents, pensions or revenues of any kind.
Designation of Provinces of which Prussia resumes Possession.
ARTICLE XXIII. His Majesty the King of Prussia having
in consequence of the last war, reassumed the possession of
the provinces and territories which had been ceded by
the Peace of Tilsit1 it is acknowledged and declared by
the present Article that His Majesty, his heirs and suc-
cessors, shall possess anew, as formerly, in full property
and Sovereignty, the following countries, that is to say ;
Those of his ancient provinces of Poland specified in
Article II ;
The City of Dantzig and its territory, as the latter was
determined by the Treaty of Tilsit 2 ;
The Circle of Cottbus ;
The Old March ;
The part of the Circle of Magdeburg situated on the left
bank of the Elbe, together with the Circle of the Saale ;
The Principality of Halberstadt, with the Lordships of
Derenburg, and of Hassenrode ;
The Town and Territory of Quedlinburg (save and except
the rights of Her Royal Highness the Princess Sophia
Albertine of Sweden, Abbess of Quedlinburg, conformably
to the arrangements made in 1803) ;
The Prussian part of the County of Mansfeld ;
The Prussian part of the County of Hohenstein ;
The Eichsfeld ;
The Town of Nordhausen with its territory ;
The Town of Muhlhausen with its territory ;
The Prussian part of the district of Trefourt with Dorla ;
The Town and Territory of Erfurth, with the exception
of Klein-Brembach and Berlstedt, inclosed in the Princi-
pality of Weimar, ceded to the Grand Duke of Saxe- Weimar
by Article XXXIX ;
The Bailiwick of Wandersleben, belonging to the County
of Unter-gleichen ;
The Principality of Paderborn, with the Prussian part
of the Bailiwicks of Schwallenberg, Oldenburg, and Stoppel-
1 Treaty of Tilsit. 1807.
1 Article VI. La Ville de Danzig avec un territoire de 2 lieues
de Rayon autour de son enceinte.
48 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
berg, and the jurisdictions (Gerichte) of Hagendorn and
Odenhausen, situated in the territory of Lippe ;
The County of Mark, with the part of Lipstadt belonging
to it ;
The County of Werden ;
The County of Essen ;
The part of the Duchy of Cleves on the right bank of the
Rhine, with the town and fortress of Wesel ; the part of
the Duchy, situated on the left bank, specified in Arti-
cle XXV;
The secularised Chapter of Elten ;
The Principality of Munster, that is to say, the Prussian
part of the former Bishopric of Munster, with the exception
of that part which has been ceded to His Britannic Majesty,
King of Hanover, in virtue of Article XXVII ;
The secularised Provostship of Cappenburg ;
The County of Tecklenburg ;
The County of Lingen, with the exception of that part
ceded to the kingdom of Hanover by Article XXVII ;
The Principality of Minden ;
The County of Ravensburg ;
The secularised Chapter of Herford ;
The Principality of Neufchatel, with the County of
Valengin, such as their Frontiers are regulated by the
Treaty of Paris, and by Article LXXVI of this General
Treaty.
The same disposition extends to the rights of Sovereignty
and suzerainete over the County of Wernigerode, to that of
high protection over the County of Hohen-Limbourg, and
to all the other rights or pretensions whatsoever which
His Prussian Majesty possessed and exercised, before the
Peace of Tilsit, and which he has not renounced by other
Treaties, Acts, or Conventions.
Prussian Possessions on this side (en de$a) of the Rhine.
ARTICLE XXIV. His Majesty the King of Prussia shall
unite to his Monarchy in Germany, on this side of the
Rhine, to be possessed by him and his successors in full
property and Sovereignty, the following countries :
The provinces of Saxony designated in Article XV, with
the exception of the places and territories ceded, in virtue
of Article XXXIX, to His Highness the Grand Duke of
Saxe- Weimar ;
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 49
The territories ceded to Prussia by His Britannic Majesty,
King of Hanover, by Article XXIX ;
Part of the Department of Fulda, and such of the terri-
tories comprehended therein as are specified in Article XL ;
The Town and Territory of Wetzlar, according to
Article XLII ;
The Grand Duchy of Berg with the Lordships of Harden-
berg, Broik, Styrum, Scholler and Odenthal, formerly be-
longing to the said Duchy under the Palatine Government ;
The districts of the ancient Archbishopric of Cologne,
lately belonging to the Grand Duchy of Berg ;
The Duchy of Westphalia, as lately possessed by His
Royal Highness the Grand Duke of Hesse ;
The County of Dortmund ;
The Principality of Corbey ;
The Mediatised Districts specified in Article XLIII.
The ancient possessions of the House of Nassau-Dietz,
having been ceded to Prussia by His Majesty the King of
the Netherlands, and a part of these possessions having
been exchanged for the districts belonging to their Serene
Highnesses the Duke and Prince of Nassau, the King of
Prussia shall possess them, in Sovereignty and property,
and unite them to his monarchy ;
1. The Principality of Siegen with the Bailiwicks of
Burbach and Neunkirchen, with the exception of a part
containing 12,000 inhabitants, to belong to the Duke and
Prince of Nassau ;
2. The Bailiwicks of Hohen-Solms, Greifenstein, Braun-
fels, Frensberg, Friedewald, Schonstein, Schonberg, Alten-
kirchen, Altenwied, Dierdorf, Neuerburg, Linz, Hammer-
stein, with Engers and Heddesdorf ; the town and territory
(Banlieue, Gemarkung) of Neuwied ; the parish of Ham,
belonging to the Bailiwick of Hackenberg ; the parish of
Horhausen, constituting part of the Bailiwick of Hersbach,
and the parts of the Bailiwicks of Vallendar and Ehren-
breitstein, on the right bank of the Rhine, designated in
the Convention concluded between His Majesty the King
of Prussia and their Serene Highnesses the Duke and Prince
of Nassau, annexed to the present Treaty.
Prussian Possessions on the left bank of the Rhine.
ARTICLE XXV. His Majesty the King of Prussia shall
also possess in full property and Sovereignty, the countries
1903 r
50 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
on the left bank of the Rhine, included in the frontier
hereinafter designated :
This frontier shall commence on the Rhine at Bingen ;
it shall thence ascend the course of the Nahe to the junction
of this river with the Glan, and along the Glan to the
village of Medart, below Lauterecken ; the towns of
Kreutznach and Meisenheim, with their territories, to belong
entirely to Prussia ; but Lauterecken and its territory to
remain beyond the Prussian frontier. From the Glan the
frontier shall pass by Medart, Merzweiler, Langweiler,
Nieder and Ober-Feckenbach, Ellenbach, Creunchenborn,
Answeiler, Cronweiler, Nieder-Brambach, Burbach, Bosch-
weiler, Heubweiler, Hambach, and Rintzenberg, to the
limits of the Canton of Hermeskeil ; the above places shall
be included within the Prussian frontiers, and shall, to-
gether with their territories, belong to Prussia.
From Rintzenberg to the Sarre the line of demarcation
shall follow the cantonal limits, so that the Cantons of
Hermeskeil and Conz (in which latter, however, are excepted
the places on the left bank of the Sarre) shall remain wholly
to Prussia, while the Cantons of Wadern, Merzig, and Sarre-
burg are to be beyond the Prussian frontier.
From the point where the limit of the Canton of Conz,
below Gomlingen, traverses the Sarre, the line shall descend
the Sarre till it falls into the Moselle ; thence it shall re-
ascend the Moselle to its junction with the Sarre, from the
latter river to the mouth of the Our, and along the Our to
the limits of the ancient Department of the Ourthe. The
places traversed by these rivers shall not at all be divided,
but shall belong, with their territories, to the Power in
whose State the greater part of these places shall be situ-
ated ; the Rivers themselves, in so far as they form the
frontier, shall belong in common to the two Powers border-
ing on them.
In the old Department of the Ourthe, the five Cantons
of Saint- Vith, Malmedy, Cronenburg, Schleiden, and Eupen,
with the advanced point of the Canton of Aubel,1 to the
south of Aix-la-Chapelle, shall belong to Prussia, and the
1 The Dutch and Prussian Commissioners, when they came to
delimit the frontier, disagreed here, and finally the village of Moresnet
was left without any nationality at all. It is about 20 miles east of
Liege, and since 1839 has been administered by Belgium and Prussia
jointly.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 51
frontier shall follow that of these cantons, so that a line,
drawn from north to south, may cut the said point of the
Canton of Aubel, and be prolonged as far as the point of
contact of the three old Departments of the Ourthe, the
Lower Meuse, and the Roer ; leaving that point, the frontier
shall follow the line which separates these two last depart-
ments till it reaches the river Worm, which falls into the
Roer, and shall go along this river to the point where it
again touches the limits of these two departments ; when
it shall pursue that limit to the south of Hillensberg, shall
ascend from thence towards the north, and leaving Hillens-
berg to Prussia, and cutting the Canton of Sittard in two
parts, nearly equal, so that Sittard and Susteren remain on
the left, shall reach the old Dutch territory ; then following
the old frontier of that territory, to the point where it
touched the old Austrian Principality of Guelders, on the
side of Ruremonde, and directing itself towards the most
eastern point of the Dutch territory, to the north of Swal-
men, it shall continue to inclose this territory.
Then, setting out from the most eastern point, it joins
that other part of the Dutch territory in which Venloo is
situated, without including the latter town and its district ;
thence to the old Dutch frontier near Mook, situated below
Genep, it shall follow the course of the Meuse, at such
a distance from the right bank that all the places situated
within a thousand Rhenish yards (Rheinlandische Rutheri)
of this bank shall, with their territories, belong to the
kingdom of the Netherlands; it being well understood,
however, in regard to the reciprocity of this principle, that
no point of the bank of the Meuse shall constitute a portion
of the Prussian territory, unless such point approach to
within 800 Rhenish yards of it.
From the point where the line just described joins the
old Dutch frontier, as far as the Rhine, this frontier shall
remain essentially as it was in 1795, between Cleves and
the United Provinces. It shall be examined by the Com-
mission which shall be appointed without delay by the
two Governments to proceed to the exact determination
of the limits, both of the kingdom of the Netherlands, and
the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg, designated in Articles
LXVI and LXVIII, and this Commission shall regulate,
with the aid of experienced persons, whatever concerns the
hydro-technical constructions, and other analogous points,
E 2
52 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
in the most equitable manner, and conformably to the
mutual interests of the Prussian States and of those of the
Netherlands. This same disposition extends to the regula-
tion of the limits in the Districts of Kyfwaerd, Lobith, and
all the territory to Kekerdom.
The places (enclaves) named Huissen, Malburg, Lymers,
with the town of Sevenaer, and the Lordship of Weel, shall
form a part of the kingdom of the Netherlands, and His
Prussian Majesty renounces them in perpetuity for himself,
his heirs and successors.
His Majesty the King of Prussia, in uniting to his States
the provinces and districts designated in the present Article,
enters into all the rights and takes upon himself all the
charges and engagements stipulated with respect to the
countries dismembered from France by the Treaty of Paris
of the 30th May, 1814.
The Prussian provinces upon the two banks of the Rhine,
as far as above the town of Cologne, which shall also be
comprised within this district, shall bear the name of
Grand Duchy of the Lower Rhine, and His Majesty shall
assume the title of it.
Kingdom of Hanover.
ARTICLE XXVI. His Majesty the King of the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, having substituted
to his ancient title of Elector of the Holy Roman Empire,
that of King of Hanover, and this title having been acknow-
ledged by all the Powers of Europe, and by the Princes
and Free Towns of Germany, the countries which have till
now composed the Electorate of Brunswick-Luneburg,
according as their limits have been recognised and fixed
for the future, by the following Articles, shall henceforth
form the Kingdom of Hanover.1
Cessions by the King of Prussia to the Kingdom of Hanover.
ARTICLE XXVII. His Majesty the King of Prussia cedes
to His Majesty the King of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, King of Hanover, to be possessed
by His Majesty and his successors, in full property and
Sovereignty :
1 The Kingdom of Hanover was annexed to the Prussian Dominions
by a Decree of the King of Prussia of September 20, 1866. (See
State Papers, vol. Ivi, p. 1067.)
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 53
1. The Principality of Hildesheim, which shall pass
under the Government of His Majesty, with all the rights
and all the charges with which the said Principality was
transferred to the Prussian Government ;
2. The Town and Territory of Goslar ;
3. The Principality of East Frieseland (Ost Friese),
including the country called Harlingerland, under the con-
ditions reciprocally stipulated in Article XXX for the
navigation of the Ems and the commerce of the port of
Embden. The States of the Principality shall preserve
their rights and privileges ;
4. The Lower County (Nieder Grafschaft) of Lingen, and
the part of the Principality of Prussian Munster which is
situated between this county and the part of Rheina-
Wolbeck occupied by the Hanoverian Government ; but
as it has been agreed that the kingdom of Hanover shall
obtain by this cession an accession of territory, comprising
a population of 22,000 souls, and as the Lower County of
Lingen and the part of the Principality of Munster here
mentioned, might not come up to this condition, His
Majesty the King of Prussia engages to cause the line of
demarcation to be extended into the Principality of Munster,
as far as may be necessary to contain that population.
The Commission, which the Prussian and Hanoverian
Governments shall name without delay, to proceed to the
exact regulation of the limits, shall be particularly charged
with the execution of this provision.
His Prussian Majesty renounces in perpetuity, for him-
self, his descendants, and successors, the Provinces and
Territories mentioned in the present Article, as well as all
the rights which have any relation to them.
Renunciation by Prussia of the Chapter of St. Peter at Noerten.
ARTICLE XXVIII. His Majesty the King of Prussia
renounces in perpetuity, for himself, his descendants, and
successors, all right and claim whatever that His Majesty,
in his quality of Sovereign of Eichsfeld, might advance to
the Chapter of St. Peter, in the borough of Noerten, or to
its dependencies, situated in the Hanoverian territory.
Cessions by the Kingdom of Hanover to Prussia.
ARTICLE XXIX. His Majesty the King of the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, King of Hanover,
54 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
cedes to His Majesty the King of Prussia, to be possessed
by him and his successors, in full property and sovereignty :
1. That part of the Duchy of Lauenburg situated upon
the right bank of the Elbe, with the villages of Luneburg,
situated on the same bank. The part of the duchy upon
the left bank remains to the kingdom of Hanover. The
States of that part of the duchy which passes under the
Prussian Government shall preserve their rights and
privileges ; especially those founded upon the provincial
Reces of the I5th September, 1702, and confirmed by the
King of Great Britain, now reigning, under date of 2ist
June, 1765 ;
2. The Bailiwick of Klotze ;
3. The Bailiwick of Elbingerode ;
4. The Villages of Rudigershagen and Gaenseteich ;
5. The Bailiwick of Reckeberg.
His Britannic Majesty, King of Hanover, renounces for
himself, his descendants and successors for ever, the
Provinces and Districts specified in the present Article,
and all the rights which have reference to them.
Navigation and Commerce between the two States.
ARTICLE XXX. His Majesty the King of Prussia, and
His Britannic Majesty, King of Hanover, animated with
the desire of entirely equalising the advantages of the
commerce of the Ems and of the Port of Embden, and of
rendering them common to their respective subjects, have
agreed on this head to what follows : —
1. The Hanoverian Government engages to cause to
be executed, at its expense, in the years 1815 and 1816,
the works which a Commission, composed partly of artists,1
and to be immediately appointed by Prussia and Hanover,
shall deem necessary to render navigable that part of the
river Ems which extends from the Prussian frontier to its
mouth, and to keep it, after the execution of such works,
always in the same state in which those works shall have
placed it for the benefit of navigation.
2. The Prussian subjects shall be allowed to import and
export, by the port of Embden, all kinds of provisions,
productions, and goods, whether natural or artificial, and
to keep in the town of Embden, warehouses wherein to
1 ' A mixed commission of experts.' See French version, State
Papers, vol. ii, p. 24.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 55
place the said goods for two years, dating from their
arrival in the towns, without their being subject to any
other inspection than that to which those of the Hanoverian
subjects are liable.
3. The Prussian vessels and merchants of the same
nation shall not pay for navigation, for exportation or
importation of merchandise, or for warehousing, any other
tolls or duties than those charged upon the Hanoverian
subjects. These tolls and duties shall be regulated by
agreement between Prussia and Hanover, and no altera-
tion shall be introduced into the tariff hereafter but by
mutual consent. The privileges and liberties just specified
extend equally to those Hanoverian subjects who navigate
that part of the river Ems which remains to the King of
Prussia.
4. Prussian subjects shall not be compellable to employ
the merchants of Embden for the trade they carry on with
that port ; they shall be at liberty to dispose of their
commodities either to the inhabitants of the town or to
foreigners, without paying any other duties than those to
which the Hanoverian subjects are subjected, and which
cannot be raised but by mutual consent.
His Majesty the King of Prussia, on his part, engages to
grant to Hanoverian subjects the free navigation of the
canal of the Stecknitz, so as not to exact from them any
other duties than those which shall be paid by the inhabi-
tants of the Duchy of Lauenburg. His Prussian Majesty
engages, besides, to insure these advantages to Hanoverian
subjects, should he hereafter cede the Duchy of Lauenburg
to another Sovereign.
Military Roads.
ARTICLE XXXI. His Majesty the King of Prussia and
His Majesty the King of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, King of Hanover, mutually agree to
three military roads through their respective dominions.
ist. One from Halberstadt, through the country of
Hildesheim, to Minden.
2nd. A second from the Old March, through Gifhorn
and Neustadt, to Minden.
3rd. A third from Osnabruck, through Ippenbiiren and
Rheina to Bentheim.
The two first in favour of Prussia, and the third in
favour of Hanover.
56 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
The two Governments shall appoint, without delay,
a Commission to prepare, by common consent, the neces-
sary regulations for the establishment of the said roads.
Relations of the Due de Looz-Corswaren and of the County
of Bentheim with the Kingdom of Hanover.
ARTICLE XXXII. The Bailiwick of Meppen, belonging
to the Duke of Aremberg, as well as the part of Rheina-
Wolbeck, belonging to the Duke of Looz-Corswaren, which
at this moment are provisionally occupied by the Hano-
verian Government, shall be placed in such relations with
the Kingdom of Hanover, as the Federative Constitution
of Germany shall regulate for the mediatised territories.
The Prussian and Hanoverian Governments having
nevertheless reserved to themselves to agree hereafter, if
necessary, to the fixing of another line of frontier with
regard to the county belonging to the Duke of Looz-
Corswaren, the said Governments shall charge the Com-
mission they may name for fixing the limits of the part
of the County of Lingen ceded to Hanover, to deliberate
thereupon, and to adjust definitively the frontiers of that
part of the county belonging to the Duke of Looz-Corswaren,
which, as aforesaid, is to be possessed by the Hanoverian
Government.
The relations between the Hanoverian Government
and the County of Bentheim shall remain as regulated by
the Treaties of Mortgage existing between His Britannic
Majesty and the Count of Bentheim ; and when the rights
derived from this Treaty shall have expired, the relations
of the County of Bentheim towards the Kingdom of
Hanover shall be such as the Federative Constitution of
Germany shall regulate for the mediatised territories.
Cession to be made by the King of Hanover to the Duke of
Oldenburg.
ARTICLE XXXIII. His Britannic Majesty, King of
Hanover, in order to meet the wishes of His Prussian
Majesty to procure a suitable arrondissement of territory
for His Serene Highness the Duke of Oldenburg, promises
to cede to him a district containing a population of 5,000
inhabitants.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 57
Title of Grand Duke in the House of Holstein-Oldenburg.
ARTICLE XXXIV. His Serene Highness the Duke of
Holstein-Oldenburg shall assume the title of Grand Duke
of Oldenburg.
Title of Grand Duke in the Houses of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
and Mecklenburg-Strelitz.
ARTICLE XXXV. Their Serene Highnesses the Dukes
of Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Mecklenburg-Strelitz shall
assume the titles of Grand Dukes of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
and Strelitz.
Title of Grand Duke in the House of Saxe-Weimar.
ARTICLE XXXVI. His Highness the Duke of Saxe-
Weimar shall assume the title of Grand Duke of Saxe-
Weimar.
Cessions to be made by Prussia to the Grand Duke of Saxe-
Weimar.
ARTICLE XXXVII. His Majesty the King of Prussia
shall cede from the mass of his States, as they have been
fixed and recognised by the present Treaty, to His Royal
Highness the Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar, districts con-
taining a population of 50,000 inhabitants, contiguous to,
or bordering upon, the Principality of Weimar.
His Prussian Majesty engages also to cede to His Royal
Highness out of that part of the Principality of Fulda
which has been given up to him in virtue of the same
stipulations, districts containing a population of 27,000
inhabitants.
His Royal Highness the Grand Duke of Weimar shall
possess the above districts in full property and Sovereignty,
and shall unite them in perpetuity to his present States.
Ulterior Arrangements respecting these Cessions.
ARTICLE XXXVIII. The districts and territories which
are to be ceded to His Royal Highness the Grand Duke of
Saxe-Weimar, in virtue of the preceding Article, shall be
determined by a particular Convention ; and His Majesty
the King of Prussia engages to conclude this Convention,
58 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
and to cause the above districts and territories to be given
up to His Royal Highness, within two months from the
date of the exchange of the ratifications of the Treaty
concluded at Vienna, ist June, 1815, between His Prussian
Majesty and His Royal Highness the Grand Duke.
Territories to be made over immediately to the Grand Duke of
Weimar.
ARTICLE XXXIX. His Majesty the King of Prussia,
however, cedes immediately, and promises to give up to
His Royal Highness, in the space of a fortnight, reckoning
from the signature of the above-mentioned Treaty, the
following districts and territories ; viz.,
The Lordship of Blankenhayn, with the reservation of
the Bailiwick of Wandersleben, belonging to Unter-
Gleichen, which is not to be comprised in this cession ;
The Lower Lordship (Niedere-Herrschaft) of Kranichfeld,
the Commanderies of the Teutonic order of Zwaetzen,
Lehesten, and Liebstadt, with their demesnial revenues,
which, constituting a part of the Bailiwick of Eckartsberga,
are inclosed in the territory of Saxe- Weimar, as well as
all the other territories inclosed within the Principality of
Weimar, and belonging to the said bailiwick ; the Bailiwick
of Tautenburg, with the exception of Droizen, Gorschen,
Wethalung, Wetterscheid, and Mollschiitz, which shall
remain to Prussia ;
The Village of Remssla, as well as the Villages of Klein-
Brembach and Berlstedt, inclosed within the Principality
of Weimar, and belonging to the territory of Erfurth ;
The property of the Villages of Bischoffsroda and
Probsteizella, inclosed within the territory of Eisenach,
the Sovereignty of which already belongs to His Royal
Highness the Grand Duke.
The population of these different districts is understood
to form part of that of 50,000 souls, secured to His Royal
Highness the Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar, by Article
XXXVII, and shall be deducted from it.
Cession of a Portion of the former Department of Fulda to
Prussia.
ARTICLE XL. The Department of Fulda, together with
the territories of the ancient Nobility (I'Ancienne Noblesse
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 59
immediate de I'Empire) comprised, at this moment, under
the provisional administration of this department, viz. :
Mansbach, Buchenau, Werda, Lengsfeld; excepting, how-
ever, the following bailiwicks and territories, viz. ; the
Bailiwicks of Hammelburg, with Thulba and Saaleck,
Briickenau with Motten, Saalmiinster, with Urzel and
Sonnerz ; also the part of the Bailiwick of Biberstein,
which contains the villages of Batten, Brand, Dietges,
Findlos, Liebharts, Melperz, Ober-Bernhardt, Saifferts,
and Thaiden, as well as the domain of Holzkirchen, inclosed
in the Grand Duchy of Wiirtzburg ; is ceded to His
Majesty the King of Prussia, and he shall be put in posses-
sion of it within three weeks from and after the ist June
of this year.
His Prussian Majesty engages to take upon himself, in
proportion to that part of the territory which he obtains
by the present Article, his share of the obligations which
all the new possessors of the heretofore Grand Duchy of
Frankfort will have to fulfil, and to transfer such engage-
ments to the Princes with whom His Majesty may hereafter
make exchanges or cessions of these districts and territories
of the Department of Fulda.
Arrangements relative to the Purchasers of Domains in the
Principality of Fulda and the County of Hanau.
ARTICLE XLI. The domains of the Principality of Fulda
and of the County of Hanau having been sold to purchasers,
who have not as yet made good all their instalments,
a Commission shall be named by the Princes to whom the
said domains are transferred, to regulate, in an uniform
manner, whatever has any reference to this transaction,
and to do justice to the claims of the purchasers of the
said domains. This Commission shall pay particular
attention to the Treaty concluded at Frankfort, on the
2nd December, 1813, between the Allied Powers and His
Royal Highness the Elector of Hesse ; and it is laid down
as a principle, that in case the sale of these domains should
not be considered as binding, the purchasers shall receive
back the sums already discharged, and they shall not be
obliged to quit before such restitution shall have had its
full and entire effect.
60 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
Cession of the Town of Wetzlar to His Majesty the King of
Prussia.
ARTICLE XLII. The Town and Territory of Wetzlar
passes, in all property and Sovereignty, to His Majesty
the King of Prussia.
Relations of the Mediatised Districts of the Old Circle of
Westphalia with the Prussian Monarchy.
ARTICLE XLIII. The following Mediatised districts,
viz. ; the possessions which the Princes of Salm-Salm
and Salm-Kyrburg, the Counts called the Rhein- und
Wildgrafen, and the Duke of Croy, obtained by the principal
Reces of the extraordinary Deputation of the Empire, of
the 25th February, 1803, in the old Circle of Westphalia,
as well as the Lordships of Anholt and Gehmen, the posses-
sions of the Duke of Looz-Corswaren, which are in the same
situation (in so far as they are not placed under the Hano-
verian Government), the County of Steinfurt, belonging
to the Count of Bentheim-Bentheim, the County of Reck-
lingshausen, belonging to the Duke of Aremberg, the
Lordships of Rheda, Giitersloh, and Gronau, belonging to
the Count of Bentheim-Tecklenburg, the County of Ritt-
berg, belonging to the Prince of Kaunitz, the Lordships
of Neustadt and Gimborn, belonging to the Count of
Walmoden, and the Lordship of Homburg, belonging to the
Princes of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, shall be placed
in such relations with the Prussian Monarchy as the
Federative Constitution of Germany shall regulate for the
Mediatised territories.
The possessions of the ancient Nobility (I'Ancienne
Noblesse immediate de I'Empire) within the Prussian
territory, and particularly the Lordship of Wildenberg, in
the Grand Duchy of Berg, and the Barony of Schauen, in
the Principality of Halberstadt, shall belong to the Prussian
Monarchy.
Cession of the Grand Duchy of Wurtzburg and of the Prin-
cipality of Aschaffenburg to the King of Bavaria.
ARTICLE XLIV. His Majesty the King of Bavaria shall
possess, for himself, his heirs and successors, in full property
and Sovereignty, the Grand Duchy of Wurtzburg, as it
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 61
was held by His Imperial Highness the Archduke Ferdinand
of Austria, and the Principality of Aschaffenburg, such as
it constituted part of the Grand Duchy of Frankfort,
under the denomination of Department of Aschaffenburg.
Maintenance of the Prince Primate.
ARTICLE XLV. With respect to the rights and pre-
rogatives, and the maintenance of the Prince Primate as
an ancient ecclesiastical Prince, it is determined ;
ist. That he shall be treated in a manner analogous to
the Articles of the Reces, which, in 1803, regulated the
situation of the secularised Princes, and to the practice
observed with regard to them.
2ndly. He shall receive for this purpose, dating from the
ist of June, 1814, the sum of 100,000 florins, by payments
of three months, in good specie, at the rate of 24 florins
to the mark, as an annuity.
This annuity shall be paid by the Sovereigns under whose
Governments the provinces or districts of the Grand Duchy
of Frankfort pass, in proportion to the part which each of
them shall possess.
3dly. The advances made by the Prince Primate, from
his private purse, to the general chest of the Principality
of Fulda, such as they have been liquidated and proved,
shall be refunded to him, his heirs, or executors.
This expenditure shall be defrayed in proportions by
the Sovereigns who shall possess the provinces and districts
composing the Principality of Fulda.
4thly. The furniture and other objects which may be
proved to belong to the private property of the Prince
Primate, shall be restored to him.
5thly. The officers of the Grand Duchy of Frankfort, as
well civil and ecclesiastical as military and diplomatic,
shall be treated conformably to the principles of Article LIX
of the Reces of the Empire, dated the 25th February, 1803,
and from the ist of June the pensions shall be proportion-
ably paid by the Sovereigns who enter on the possession
of the States which formed the said Grand Duchy since
the ist of June, 1814.
6thly. A Commission shall be established without delay,
composed of members appointed by the said Sovereigns,
to regulate whatever relates to the execution of the dis-
positions comprised in this Article.
62 • CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
7thly. It is understood, that in virtue of this arrange-
ment, any claim that might be advanced against the Prince
Primate, in his character of Grand Duke of Frankfort, shall
be annulled, and that he shall not be molested on account
of any reclamation of this nature.
Free Town of Frankfort.
ARTICLE XLVI. The City of Frankfort, with its territory,
such as it was in 1803, is declared Free, and shall constitute
a part of the Germanic League. Its institutions shall be
founded upon the principle of a perfect equality of rights
for the different sects of the Christian religion. This
equality of rights shall extend to all civil and political
rights, and shall be observed in all matters of government
and administration. The disputes which may arise, whether
in regard to the establishment of the Constitution, or in
regard to its maintenance, shall be referred to the Germanic
Diet, and can only be decided by the same.1
Indemnities to the Grand Duke of Hesse.
ARTICLE XLVIL His Royal Highness the Grand Duke
of Hesse, in exchange for the Duchy of Westphalia, ceded
to His Majesty the King of Prussia, obtains a territory on
the left bank of the Rhine, in the ancient Department of
Mont-Tonnerre, comprising a population of 140,000 inhabi-
tants. His Royal Highness shall possess this territory in
full Sovereignty and property. He shall likewise obtain
the property of that part of the Salt Mines of Kreutznach
which is situated on the left bank of the Nahe, but the
Sovereignty of them shall remain to Prussia.
Reinstatement of the Landgrave of Hesse-Honiburg.
ARTICLE XLVIII. The Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg is
reinstated in his possessions, revenues, rights, and political
relations, of which he was deprived in consequence of the
Confederation of the Rhine.
» The Free Town of Frankfort was annexed to Prussia by Decree
dated September 20, 1866. (See Hertslet's Map of Europe by
Treaty, vol. i, p. 240, foot-note.)
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 63
Territories reserved for the Houses of Oldenburg, Saxe-
Coburg, Meckleriburg-Strelitz, Hesse-Homburg, and the
Count of Pappenheim.
ARTICLE XLIX. In the ci-devant Department of the
Sarre, on the Frontiers of the States of His Majesty the
King of Prussia, there is reserved a district, containing
a population of 69,000 souls, to be disposed of in the
following manner : — The Duke of Saxe-Coburg and the
Duke of Oldenburg shall obtain each a territory comprising
20,000 inhabitants. The Duke of Mecklenburg-Strelitz and
the Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg, each a Territory com-
prising 10,000 inhabitants ; and the Count of Pappenheim
a Territory comprising 9,000 inhabitants.
The territory of the Count of Pappenheim shall be under
the Sovereignty of His Prussian Majesty.
Future Arrangements respecting these Territories.
ARTICLE L. The acquisitions assigned by the preceding
Article to the Dukes of Saxe-Coburg, Oldenburg, Mecklen-
burg-Strelitz, and the Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg, not
being contiguous to their respective States, their Majesties
the Emperor of Austria, the Emperor of all the Russias,
and the Kings of Great Britain and Prussia, promise to
employ their good offices, at the close of the present war,
or as soon as circumstances shall permit, in order to pro-
cure for the said Princes, either by exchanges or any other
arrangements, the advantages that they are disposed to
insure to them ; and that the administration of the said
districts may be rendered less complicated, it is agreed
that they shall be provisionally under the Prussian adminis-
tration for the benefit of the new proprietors.
Territory on the two Banks of the Rhine ceded to the Emperor
of Austria.
ARTICLE LI. All the territories and possessions, as well
on the left bank of the Rhine, in the old Departments of
the Sarre and Mont-Tonnerre, as in the former Depart-
ments of Fulda and Frankfort, or inclosed in the adjacent
countries, placed at the disposal of the Allied Powers by
the Treaty of Paris of 3oth May, 1814, and not disposed
of by other Articles of the present Treaty, shall pass in
full Sovereignty and property, under the Government of
His Majesty the Emperor of Austria.
64 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
Principality of Isenburg.
ARTICLE LII. The Principality of Isenburg is placed
under the Sovereignty of His Imperial and Royal Apostolic
Majesty, and shall belong to him, under such limitations
as the Federative Constitution of Germany shall regulate
for the Mediatised States.
Germanic Confederation.
ARTICLE LIII. The Sovereign Princes and Free Towns
of Germany, under which denomination, for the present
purpose, are comprehended their Majesties the Emperor of
Austria, the Kings of Prussia, of Denmark, and of the
Netherlands ; that is to say : —
The Emperor of Austria and the King of Prussia, for all
their possessions which anciently belonged to the German
Empire ;
The King of Denmark, for the Duchy of Holstein ;
And the King of the Netherlands, for the Grand Duchy
of Luxemburg ;
establish among themselves a perpetual Confederation,
which shall be called ' The Germanic Confederation '.*
Object of this Confederation.
ARTICLE LIV. The object of this Confederation is the
maintenance of the external and internal safety of Germany,
and of the Independence and Inviolability of the Con-
federated States.
Equality of its Members.
ARTICLE LV. The Members of the Confederation, as
such, are equal with regard to their rights ; and they all
equally engage to maintain the Act which constitutes their
union.
Federative Diet.
ARTICLE LVI. The affairs of the Confederation shall be
confided to a Federative Diet, in which all the Members
shall vote by their Plenipotentiaries, either individually or
collectively, in the following manner, without prejudice to
their rank : —
1 The Germanic Confederation was dissolved after the Austro-
Prussian War of 1 866, and replaced by the North German Confedera-
tion, of which Austria was not a member. This again was replaced,
after the Franco-German War of 1870-1, by the German Empire.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 65
1. Austria . . . . .1 Vote.
2. Prussia . . . . . i
3. Bavaria . . . . i
4. Saxony . . . . . i
5. Hanover . . . . . i
6. - Wurtemberg ..... i
7. Baden .... . i
8. Electoral Hesse1 . . . i
9. Grand Duchy of Hesse 2 . . . i
10. Denmark, for Holstein . . . i
11. The Netherlands, for Luxemburg . i
12. Grand-Ducal and Ducal Houses of
Saxony . . . . . i
13. Brunswick and Nassau . . . i
14. Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Strelitz . i
15. Holstein-Oldenburg, Anhalt and
Schwartzburg . . . i ,,
16. Hohenzollern, Liechtenstein, Reuss,
Schaumburg-Lippe, Lippe and
Waldeck . . . . i ,,
17. The Free Towns of Lubeck, Frank-
fort, Bremen, and Hamburgh . i ,,
Total. . . . 17 Votes.
•
Presidency of Austria.
ARTICLE LVII. Austria shall preside at the Federative
Diet. Each State of the Confederation has the right of
making propositions, and the presiding State shall bring
them under deliberation within a definite time.
Composition of the General Assembly.
ARTICLE LVIII. Whenever fundamental laws are to be
enacted, changes made in the fundamental laws of the
Confederation, measures adopted relative to the Federative
Act itself, and organic institutions or other arrangements
made for the common interest, the Diet shall form itself into
a General Assembly, and, in that case, the distribution of
votes shall be as follows, calculated according to the
respective extent of the individual States : —
1 Hesse-Cassel. * Hesse-Darmstadt.
1903 K
66 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
Austria shall have
Prussia ....
Saxony ....
Bavaria ....
Hanover ....
Wurtemberg
Baden ....
Electoral Hesse1.
Grand Duchy of Hesse 2
Holstein ....
Luxemburg
Brunswick
Mecklenburg-Schwerin
Nassau ....
Saxe-Weimar .
Saxe-Gotha
Saxe-Coburg
Saxe-Meiningen .
Saxe-Hildburghausen .
Mecklenburg-Strelitz .
Holstein-Oldenburg .
Anhalt-Dessau .
Anhalt-Bernburg
Anhalt-Kothen .
Schwartaburg-Sondershausen
Schwartzburg-Rudolstadt .
Hohenzollern-Heckingen
Liechtenstein .
Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen .
Waldeck ....
Reuss (Elder Branch) 3
Reuss (Younger Branch) 4 .
Schaumburg-Lippe .
Lippe ....
The Free Town of Lubeck .
,, ,, Frankfort
„ ,, Bremen .
,, „ Hamburgh
Total .
Vote.
4 Votes.
4
4
4
4
4
3
3
3
3
3
2
2
2
I
I-
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
I
69 Votes.
Hesse-Cassel.
Reuss-Greitz.
Hesse-Darmstadt.
Reuss-Schleitz.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 67
The Diet in deliberating on the organic laws of the
Confederation, shall consider whether any collective votes
ought to be granted to the ancient Mediatised States of
the Empire.
Arrangements relative to the Diet.
ARTICLE LIX. The question, whether a subject is to be
discussed by the General Assembly, conformably to the
principles above established, shall be decided in the Ordinary
Assembly by a majority of votes. The same Assembly
shall prepare the drafts of resolutions which are to be
proposed to the General Assembly, and shall furnish the
latter with all the necessary information, either for adopt-
ing or rejecting them.
The plurality of votes shall regulate the decisions, both
in the Ordinary and General Assemblies, with this differ-
ence, however, that in the Ordinary Assembly, an absolute
majority shall be deemed sufficient, while, in the other,
two-thirds of the votes shall be necessary to form the
majority.
When the votes are even in the Ordinary Assembly, the
President shall have the casting vote ; but when the
Assembly is to deliberate on the acceptance or change of
any of the fundamental laws, upon organic institutions,
upon individual rights, or upon affairs of religion, the
plurality of votes shall not be deemed sufficient, either in
the Ordinary or in the General Assembly.
The Diet is permanent : it may, however, when the
subjects submitted to its deliberation are disposed of,
adjourn for a fixed period, which shall not exceed four
months.
All ulterior arrangements relative to the postponement
or the dispatch of urgent business which may arise during
the recess shall be reserved for the Diet, which will consider
them when engaged in preparing the organic laws.
Order of Voting.
ARTICLE LX. With respect to the order in which the
members of the Confederation shall vote, it is agreed, that
while the Diet shall be occupied in framing organic laws,
there shall be no fixed regulation ; and whatever may be
the order observed on such an occasion, it shall neither
F 2
68 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
prejudice any of the members, nor establish a precedent
for the future. After framing the organic laws, the Diet
will deliberate upon the manner of arranging this matter
by a permanent regulation, for which purpose it will
depart as little as possible from those which have been
observed in the ancient Diet, and more particularly accord-
ing to the Reels of the Deputation of the Empire in 1803.
The order to be adopted shall in no way affect the rank
and precedence of the members of the Confederation
except in as far as they concern the Diet.
Sittings of Diet to be held at Frankfort.
ARTICLE LXI. The Diet shall assemble at Frankfort
on the Maine. Its first meeting is fixed for the ist of
September, 1815.
Framing of Fundamental Laws.
ARTICLE LXII. The first object to be considered by
the Diet after its opening shall be the framing of the
fundamental laws of the Confederation, and of its organic
institutions, with respect to its exterior, military, and
interior relations.
Maintenance of Peace in Germany.
ARTICLE LXIII. The States of the Confederation engage
to defend not only the whole of Germany, but each indi-
vidual State of the Union, in case it should be attacked,
and they mutually guarantee to each other such of their
possessions as are comprised in this Union.
When war shall be declared by the Confederation, no
member can open a separate negotiation with the enemy,
nor make peace, nor conclude an armistice, without the
consent of the other members.
The Confederated States engage, in the same manner,
not to make war against each other, on any pretext, nor
to pursue their differences by force of arms, but to submit
them to the Diet, which will attempt a mediation by means
of a Commission. If this should not succeed, and a juridical
sentence becomes necessary, recourse shall be had to a well
organized Austregal Court (Austragalinstanz) , to the decision
of which the contending parties are to submit without
appeal.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 69
Confirmation of Particular Arrangements of the Act of the
Confederation.
ARTICLE LXIV. The Articles comprised under the title
of Particular Arrangements, in the Act of the Germanic
Confederation, as annexed to the present General Treaty,
both in original and in a French translation, shall have
the same force and validity as if they were textually
inserted herein.
Kingdom of the Netherlands.
ARTICLE LXV. The ancient United Provinces of the
Netherlands and the late Belgic Provinces, both within
the limits fixed by the following Article, shall form —
together with the countries and territories designated in
the same Article, under the Sovereignty of His Royal
Highness the Prince of Orange-Nassau, Sovereign Prince
of the United Provinces — the Kingdom of the Nether-
lands, hereditary in the order of succession already estab-
lished by the Act of the Constitution of the said United
Provinces. The title and the prerogatives of the Royal
dignity are recognised by all the Powers in the House of
Orange-Nassau.1
Boundaries of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
ARTICLE LXVI. The line comprising the territories
which compose the Kingdom of the Netherlands is deter-
mined in the following manner : —
It leaves the sea, and extends along the frontiers of
France on the side of the Netherlands, as rectified and
fixed by Article III of the Treaty of Paris of the 3oth May,
1814, to the Meuse ; thence along the same frontiers to
the old limits of the Duchy of Luxemburg. From this
point it follows the direction of the limits between that
Duchy and the ancient Bishopric of Liege, till it meets (to
the south of Deiffelt) the western limits of that canton,
and of that of Malmedy, to the point where the latter
reaches the limits between the old Departments of the
1 The Netherlands and Belgium were separated under the pro-
visions of the Treaties of 1831 and 1839, when Belgium was estab-
lished as an Independent and Neutral State. This matter is subse-
quently dealt with in a separate chapter, see page 126.
70
Ourthe and the Roer ; it then follows these limits to where
they touch those of the former French Canton of Eupen,
in the Duchy of Limburg, and following the western limit
of that canton, in a northerly direction, leaving to the
right a small part of the former French Canton of Aubel,
joins the point of contact of the three old Departments of
the Ourthe, the Lower Meuse, and the Roer ; parting again
from this point, this line follows that which divides the two
latter departments, until it reaches the Worm (a river
falling into the Roer), and goes along this river to the
point where it again reaches the limit of these two depart-
ments, pursues this limit to the south of Hillensberg (the
old Department of the Roer), from whence it reascends to
the north, and leaving Hillensberg to the right and divid-
ing the Canton of Sittard into two nearly equal parts, so
that Sittard and Susteren remain on the left, it reaches
the old Dutch territory, from whence, leaving this territory
to the left, it goes on following its eastern frontier to the
point where it touches the old Austrian Principality of
Guelders, on the south side of Ruremonde, and directing
itself towards the most eastern point of the Dutch territory,
to the north of Swalmen, continues to inclose this territory.
Lastly, setting out from the most eastern point it joins
that part of the Dutch territory in which Venloo is situated ;
that town and its territory being included within it.
From thence to the old Dutch frontier near Mook, situated
above Genep, the line follows the course of the Meuse at
such a distance from the right bank that all the places
within 1,000 Rhenish yards (Rheinlandische Ruthen) from
it shall belong, with their territories, to the Kingdom of
the Netherlands ; it being understood, however, as to the
reciprocity of this principle, that the Prussian territory
shall not at any point touch the Meuse, or approach it
within the distance of 1,000 Rhenish yards.
From the point where the line just described reaches the
ancient Dutch frontier, as far as the Rhine, this frontier
shall remain essentially the same as it was in 1795, between
Cleves and the United Provinces.
This line shall be examined by a Commission, which the
Governments of Prussia and the Netherlands shall name
without delay, for the purpose of proceeding to the exact
determination of the limits, as well of the Kingdom of the
Netherlands, as of the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg, specified
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 71
in Article LXVIII ; and this Commission, aided by pro-
fessional persons, shall regulate everything concerning the
hydrotechnical constructions, and other similar points, in
the most equitable manner, and the most conformable to
the mutual interests of the Prussian States, and of those
of the Netherlands. This same arrangement refers to the
fixing of limits in the Districts of Kyfwaerd, Lobith, and
in the whole territory as far as Kekerdom.
The enclaves of Huissen, Malburg, Lymers, with the town
of Sevenaer and Lordship of Weel, shall form a part of
the Kingdom of the Netherlands ; and His Prussian
Majesty renounces them in perpetuity, for himself, his heirs
and successors.
Grand Duchy oj Luxemburg.
ARTICLE LXVII. That part of the old Duchy of Luxem-
burg which is comprised in the limits specified in the
following Article, is likewise ceded to the Sovereign Prince
of the United Provinces, now King of the Netherlands, to
be possessed in perpetuity by him and his successors, in
full property and Sovereignty. The Sovereign of the
Netherlands shall add to his titles that of Grand Duke
of Luxemburg, His Majesty reserving to himself the
privilege of making such family arrangement between the
Princes his sons, relative to the succession to the Grand
Duchy, as he shall think conformable to the interests of
his monarchy and to his paternal intentions.
The Grand Duchy of Luxemburg, serving as a compensa-
tion for the Principalities of Nassau-Dillenburg, Siegen,
Hadamar and Dietz, shall form one of the States of the
Germanic Confederation ; and the Prince, King of the
Netherlands, shall enter into the system of this Confedera-
tion as Grand Duke of Luxemburg, with all the prerogatives
and privileges enjoyed by the other German Princes.
The Town of Luxemburg, in a military point of view,
shall be considered as a Fortress of the Confederation ; the
Grand Duke shall, however, retain the right of appoint-
ing the Governor and military Commandant of this Fortress,
subject to the approbation of the executive power of the
Confederation, and under such other conditions as it may
be judged necessary to establish, in conformity with the
future Constitution of the said Confederation.
72 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
Boundaries of the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg.
ARTICLE LXVIII. The Grand Duchy of Luxemburg
shall consist of all the territory situated between the King-
dom of the Netherlands, as it has been designated by
Article LXVI, France, the Moselle, as far as the mouth
of the Sure, the course of the Sure, as far as the junction
of the Our, and the course of this last river, as far as the
limits of the former French Canton of St. Vith, which shall
not belong to the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg.1
Arrangements respecting the Duchy of Bouillon.
ARTICLE LXIX. His Majesty the King of the Nether-
lands, Grand Duke of Luxemburg, shall possess in per-
petuity, for himself and his successors, the full and entire
Sovereignty of that part of the Duchy of Bouillon, which
is not ceded to France by the Treaty of Paris ; and which,
therefore, shall be united to the Grand Duchy of Luxem-
burg.
Disputes having arisen with respect to the said Duchy
of Bouillon, the competitor who shall legally establish his
right, in the manner hereafter specified, shall possess, in
full property, the said part of the Duchy, as it was enjoyed
by the last Duke, under the Sovereignty of His Majesty the
King of the Netherlands, Grand Duke of Luxemburg.
This decision shall be made by Arbitration, and be
without appeal. For this purpose there shall be appointed
a certain number of arbitrators, one by each of the two
competitors, and others, to the number of three, by the
Courts of Austria, Prussia, and Sardinia. They shall
assemble at Aix-la-Chapelle, as soon as the state of the war
and other circumstances may admit of it, and their deter-
mination shall be made known within six months from their
first meeting.
In the interim, His Majesty the King of the Netherlands,
Grand Duke of Luxemburg, shall hold in trust the property
of the said part of the Duchy of Bouillon, in order that he
may restore it, together with the revenues of the pro-
visional administration, to the competitor in whose favour
the arbitrators shall decide ; and His said Majesty shall
1 A general Treaty was concluded on May n, 1867, on the
subject of the neutrality, &c., of Luxemburg. This matter is
subsequently dealt with in a separate Paper ; see p. 256.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 73
indemnify him for the loss of the revenues arising from the
rights of Sovereignty, by means of some equitable arrange-
ment. Should the restitution fall to Prince Charles of
Rohan, this property, when in his possession, shall be
regulated by the laws of the substitution which constitutes
his title thereto.
Cession to Prussia of the German Possessions of the House
of Nassau-Orange.
ARTICLE LXX. His Majesty the King of the Nether-
lands renounces, in perpetuity for himself, his heirs, and
successors, in favour of His Majesty the King of Prussia,
the sovereign possessions which the House of Nassau-
Orange held in Germany, namely, the Principalities of
Dillenburg, Dietz, Siegen, and Hadamar, with the Lord-
ships of Beilstein, such as those possessions have been
definitively arranged between the two branches of the
House of Nassau, by the Treaty concluded at the Hague
on the I4th July, 1814.
His Majesty also renounces the Principality of Fulda,
and the other districts and territories which were secured
to him by Article XII of the Principal Reces of the Extra-
ordinary Deputation of the Empire of the 25th of February,
1803.
Family Pact between the Princes of Nassau.
ARTICLE LXXI. The right and order of Succession,
established between the two branches of the House of
Nassau, by the Act of 1783, called Nassauischer Erbverein,
is confirmed, and transferred from the four Principalities
of Orange-Nassau to the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg.
Charges and Engagements pertaining to the Provinces detached
from France.
ARTICLE LXXII. His Majesty the King of the Nether-
lands, in uniting under his Sovereignty the Countries
designated in Articles LXVI and LXVIII, enters into all
the rights, and takes upon himself all the charges and all
the stipulated engagements, relative to the Provinces and
Districts detached from France by the Treaty of Peace
concluded at Paris the 30th May, 1814.
74 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
Act of Re-union of the Belgic Provinces.
ARTICLE LXXIII. His Majesty the King of the Nether-
lands, having recognised and sanctioned, under date of
the 2ist July, 1814, as the Basis of the Union of the Belgic
Provinces with the United Provinces, the 8 Articles con-
tained in the document annexed to the present Treaty,
the said Articles shall have the same force and validity
as if they were inserted, word for word, in the present
Instrument.1
Integrity of the Nineteen Cantons of Switzerland.
ARTICLE LXXI V. The integrity of the Nineteen Cantons,
as they existed in a political body, from the signature of
the Convention of the 2gth December, 1813, is recognised
as the basis of the Helvetic system.
Union of Three new Cantons.
ARTICLE LXXV. The Valais, the territory of Geneva,
and the Principality of Neufchatel, are united to Switzer-
land, and shall form Three new Cantons.
La Vallee des Dappes, having formed part of the Canton
of Vaud, is restored to it.
Union of Bishopric of Basle, and Town and Territory of
Bienne, with Canton of Berne.
ARTICLE LXXVI. The Bishopric of Basle, and the city
and territory of Bienne, shall be united to the Helvetic
Confederation, and shall form part of the Canton of Berne.
The following districts, however, are excepted from this
last arrangement :
1. A District of about three square leagues in extent,
including the Communes of Altschweiler, Schonbach, Ober-
weiler, Terweiler, Ettingen, Fiirstenstein, Plotten, Pf effingen,
Aesch, Bruck, Reinach, Arlesheim ; which District shall be
united to the Canton of Basle.
2. A small Enclave, situated near the Neufchatel village
of Lignieres, which is at present, with respect to civil
jurisdiction, dependant upon the Canton of Neufchatel,
and with respect to criminal jurisdiction upon that of the
Bishopric of Basle, shall belong in full Sovereignty to the
Principality of Neufchatel.
1 See foot-note to Article LXV.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 75
Rights of Inhabitants of Countries united with Canton of
Berne.
ARTICLE LXXVII. The inhabitants of the Bishopric of
Basle, and those of Bienne, united to the Cantons of Berne
and Basle, shall enjoy, in every respect, without any dis-
tinction of Religion (which shall be maintained in its present
state) the same political and civil rights which are enjoyed,
or may be enjoyed, by the inhabitants of the ancient parts
of the said cantons ; they shall, therefore, be equally
competent to become candidates for the places of Repre-
sentatives, and for all other appointments, according to
the constitution of the cantons. Such municipal privileges
as are compatible with the constitution and the general
regulations of the Canton of Berne, shall be preserved to
the town of Bienne, and to the villages that formed part
of its jurisdiction.
The sale of the national domains shall be confirmed, and
the feudal rights and tithes cannot be re-established.
The respective Acts of the union shall be framed, con-
formably to the principles above declared, by Commissions,
composed of an equal number of deputies from each of the
directing parties concerned. Those from the Bishopric of
Basle shall be chosen by the canton from amongst the most
eminent citizens of the country. The said Acts shall be
guaranteed by the Swiss Confederation. All points upon
which the parties cannot agree, shall be decided by a court
of Arbitration, to be named by the Diet.
Restoration of Lordship of Raziins to the Canton of Grisons.
ARTICLE LXXVIII. The cession, made by Article III
of the Treaty of Vienna, of the I4th October, 1809, of the
Lordship of Raziins, inclosed in the country of the Grisons,
having expired ; and His Majesty the Emperor of Austria,
being restored to all the rights attached to the said posses-
sion, confirms the disposition which he made of it, by
a Declaration, dated the 20th March, 1815, in favour of
the Canton of the Grisons.
Arrangements between France and Geneva.
ARTICLE LXXIX. In order to ensure the commercial
and military communications of the Town of Geneva with
the Canton of Vaud, and the rest of Switzerland ; and
76 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
with a view to fulfil, in that respect, Article IV of the
Treaty of Paris of the soth May, 1814, His Most Christian
Majesty consents so to place the line of custom-houses,
that the road which leads from Geneva into Switzerland
by Versoy, shall at all times be free, and that neither the
post nor travellers, nor the transport of merchandise, shall
be interrupted by any examination of the officers of the
Customs, nor subjected to any duty.
It is equally understood that the passage of Swiss troops
on this road shall not, in any manner, be obstructed.
In the additional regulations to be made on this subject,
the execution of the Treaties relative to the free com-
munication between the town of Geneva and the jurisdic-
tion of Peney, shall be assured in the manner most con-
venient to the inhabitants of Geneva. His Most Christian
Majesty also consents that the gendarmerie and militia of
Geneva, after having communicated on the subject with
the nearest military post of the French gendarmerie, shall
pass on the high road of Meyrin, to and from the said
jurisdiction and the town of Geneva.
Cessions by the King of Sardinia to the Canton of Geneva.
ARTICLE LXXX. His Majesty the King of Sardinia
cedes that part of Savoy which is situated between the
river Arve, the Rhone, the limits of that part of Savoy
ceded to France, and the mountain of Saleve, as far as
Veiry inclusive, together with that part which lies between
the high road called that of the Simplon, .the Lake of
Geneva, and the present territory of the canton of Geneva,
from Venezas to the point where the river Hermancc
crosses the said road ; and from thence, following the
course of that river to where it enters the Lake of Geneva,
to the east of the village of Hermance (the whole of the
road of the Simplon continuing to be possessed by His
Majesty the King of Sardinia) in order that these countries
shall be united (reunis) to the canton of Geneva ; with
the reservation, however, of determining more precisely,
by Commissioners respectively, their limits, particularly
that part which relates to the demarcation above Veiry
and on the mountain of Saleve ; His said Majesty renounc-
ing for himself and his successors, in perpetuity, without
exception or reservation, all rights of Sovereignty, or other
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 77
rights which may belong to him in the places and territories
comprised within this demarcation.
His Majesty the King of Sardinia also agrees, that the
communication between the canton of Geneva and the
Valais, by the road of the Simplon, shall be established, in
the same manner as it has been agreed to by France,
between Geneva and the canton of Vaud, by the route of
Versoy. A free communication shall also be at all times
granted for the Genevese troops, between the territory of
Geneva and the jurisdiction of Jussy, and such facilities
shall be allowed as may be necessary for proceeding by
the lake to the road of the Simplon.
On the other hand, an exemption from all duties of
transit shall be granted for all merchandise and goods
which, coming from the States of His Majesty the King of
Sardinia and the Free Port of Genoa, shall traverse the
road called the Simplon in its whole extent, through the
Valais and the State of Geneva. This exemption shall,
however, be confined to the transit, and shall extend
neither to the tolls established for the maintenance of the
road, nor to duties levied on merchandise or goods intended
to be sold or consumed in the interior. The same reserva-
tion shall apply to the communication granted to the
Swiss between the Valais and the canton of Geneva ; and
the different Governments shall for this purpose take such
measures as, by common agreement, they shall judge
necessary, either for taxation or for preventing contraband
trade in their territories, respectively.
Compensations between the Old and the New Cantons.
ARTICLE LXXXI. With a view to the establishing of
reciprocal compensations, the Cantons of Argovia, Vaud,
Tessin, and St. Gall, shall furnish to the ancient Cantons
of Schweitz, Unterwald, Uri, Claris, Zug and Appenzell
(Rhode Interieure] a sum of money to be applied to pur-
poses of public instruction, and to the expenses of general
administration, but principally to the former object, in the
said cantons.
The quota, manner of payment, and division of this
pecuniary compensation, are fixed as follows : —
The Cantons of Argovia, Vaud, and St. Gall shall furnish
to the Cantons of Schweitz, Unterwald, Uri, Zug, Claris,
78 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
and Appenzell (Rhode Interieure) , a fund of 500,000 Swiss
livres.
Each of the former cantons shall pay the interest of its
quota, at the rate of 5 per cent, per annum, or have the
option of discharging the principal, either in money or
funded property.
The division, either of the payment or receipt of these
funds, shall be made according to the scale of contributions
laid down for providing the federal expenses.
The Canton of Tessin shall pay every year to the Canton
of Uri, a moiety of the produce of the tolls in the Levantine
Valley.
Arrangements respecting Funds invested in England.
ARTICLE LXXXII. To put an end to the discussions
which have arisen, with respect to the funds placed in
England by the Cantons of Zurich and Berne, it is deter-
mined :
1. That the Cantons of Berne and Zurich shall preserve
the property of the funded capital as it existed in 1803,
at the period of the dissolution of the Helvetic Government,
and shall receive the interest thereof, from the ist January,
1815 ;
2. That the accumulated interest due since the year
1798, up to the year 1814, inclusive, shall be applied to
the payment of the remaining capital of the national debt,
known under the denomination of the Helvetic debt ;
3. That the surplus of the Helvetic debt shall remain
at the charge of the other cantons, those of Berne and
Zurich being exonerated by the above arrangement. The
quota of each of the cantons which remain charged with
this surplus, shall be calculated and paid according to the
proportion fixed for the contributions destined to defray
federal expenses. The countries incorporated with Switzer-
land since 1813 shall not be assessed on account of the old
Helvetic debt.
If it shall happen that an overplus remains after dis-
charging the above debt, that overplus shall be divided
between the Cantons of Berne and Zurich, in the proportion
of their respective capitals.
The same regulations shall be observed with regard to
those other debts, the documents concerning which are
deposited in the custody of the President of the Diet.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 79
Indemnity to Proprietors of ' Lauds '.
ARTICLE LXXXIII. To conciliate disputes respecting
Lauds abolished without indemnification, an indemnity
shall be given to persons who are owners of such Lauds ;
and for the purpose of avoiding all further differences on
this subject between the Cantons of Berne and Vaud, the
latter shall pay to the Government of Berne the sum of
300,000 Swiss livres, which shall be shared between the
Bernese claimants, proprietors of Lauds. The payments
shah* be made at the rate of a fifth part each year, com-
mencing from the ist January, 1816.
Confirmation of the Declaration of2oth March, 1815, relative
to the affairs of Switzerland.
ARTICLE LXXXIV. The Declaration of the 20th March,
addressed by the Allied Powers who signed the Treaty of
Paris, to the Diet of the Swiss Confederation, and accepted
by the Diet through the Act of Adhesion of the 27th May,
is confirmed in the whole of its tenor ; and the principles
established, as also the arrangements agreed upon, in the
said Declaration, shall be invariably maintained.
Boundaries of the States of the King of Sardinia.
ARTICLE LXXXV. The frontiers of the States of His
Majesty the King of Sardinia shall be : —
On the side of France, such as they were on the ist of
January, 1792, with the exception of the changes effected
by the Treaty of Paris of the 30th May, 1814 ;
On the side of the Helvetic Confederation, such as they
existed on the ist of January 1792, with the exception of
the change produced by the cession in favour of the Canton
of Geneva, as specified by Article LXXX of the present
Act;
On the side of the States of His Majesty the Emperor
of Austria, such as they existed on the ist of January,
1792 ; and the Convention concluded between their
Majesties the Empress Maria Theresa and the King of
Sardinia, on the 4th October, 1751, shall be reciprocally
confirmed in all its stipulations ;
On the side of the States of Parma and Placentia, the
frontier as far as it concerns the ancient States of the King
8o CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
of Sardinia, shall continue to be the same as they were on
the ist of January, 1792.
The borders of the former States of Genoa, and of the
countries called Imperial Fiefs, united to the States of
Hie Majesty the King of Sardinia, according to the follow-
ing Articles, shall be the same as those which, on the ist
of January, 1792, separated those countries from the States
of Parma and Placentia, and from those of Tuscany and
Massa.
The island of Capraja, having belonged to the ancient
republic of Genoa, is included in the cession of the States
of Genoa, to His Majesty the King of Sardinia.
Union of the States of Genoa with the States of the King of
Sardinia.
ARTICLE LXXXVI. The States which constituted the
former republic of Genoa, are united in perpetuity to those
of His Majesty the King of Sardinia, to be, like the latter,
possessed by him in full Sovereignty and hereditary
property ; and to descend, in the male line, in the order
of primogeniture, to the two branches of his house, viz. :
the royal branch, and the branch of Savoy-Carignan.
Title of Duke of Genoa.
ARTICLE LXXXVII. The King of Sardinia shall add to
his present titles, that of Duke of Genoa.
Rights and Privileges of the Genoese.
ARTICLE LXXXVIII. The Genoese shall enjoy all the
rights and privileges, specified in this Act, intituled ' Con-
ditions which are to serve as the basis of the Union of the
Genoese States to those of His Sardinian Majesty ', and
the said Act, such as it is annexed to this General Treaty,
shall be considered as an integral part thereof, and shall
have the same force and validity as if it were textually
inserted in the present Article.
Union of the Imperial Fiefs. .
ARTICLE LXXXIX. The countries called Imperial Fiefs,
formerly united to the ancient Ligurian Republic, are
definitely united to the States of His Majesty the King of
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 81
Sardinia, in the same manner as the rest of the Genoese
States ; and the inhabitants of these countries shall enjoy
the same rights and privileges as those of the States of
Genoa, specified in the preceding Article.
Right of Fortifying.
ARTICLE XC. The right that the Powers who signed the
Treaty of Paris of the soth May, 1814, reserved to them-
selves by Article III of that Treaty, of fortifying such
points of their States as they might judge proper for their
safety, is equally reserved, without restriction, to His
Majesty the King of Sardinia.
Cession by the King of Sardinia to the Canton of Geneva.
ARTICLE XCI. His Majesty the King of Sardinia cedes
to the Canton of Geneva the districts of Savoy, designated
in Article LXXX above recited, according to the con-
ditions specified in the Act, intituled ' Cession made by
His Majesty the King of Sardinia to the Canton of Geneva '.
This Act shall be considered as an integral part of this
General Treaty, to which it is annexed, and shall have the
same force and validity as if it were textually inserted in
the present Article.1
Neutrality of Chablais and Faucigny.
ARTICLE XCI I. The Provinces of Chablais and Faucigny,
and the whole of the territory of Savoy to the north of
Ugine, belonging to His Majesty the King of Sardinia,
shall form a part of the Neutrality of Switzerland, as it is
recognised and guaranteed by the Powers.
Whenever, therefore, the neighbouring Powers to Switzer-
land are in a state of open or impending hostility, the
troops of His Majesty the King of Sardinia which may be
in those provinces, shall retire, and may for that purpose
pass through the Valais, if necessary. No other armed
troops of any other Power shall have the privilege of
passing through or remaining in the said territories and
provinces, excepting those which the Swiss Confederation
shall think proper to place there ; it being well under-
stood that this state of things shall not in any manner
1 Savoy and Nice were ceded to France by Sardinia by the Treaty
between those two Powers of March 24, 1860.
82 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
interrupt the administration of these countries, in which
the civil agents of His Majesty the King of Sardinia may
likewise employ the municipal guard, for the preservation
of good order.
Designation of the Territories of which the Emperor of Austria
resumes possession on the side of Italy.
ARTICLE XCIII. In pursuance of the Renunciations
agreed upon by the Treaty of Paris of the 30th May, 1814,
the Powers who sign the present Treaty recognise His
Majesty the Emperor of Austria, his heirs and successors,
as legitimate Sovereign of the Provinces and Territories
which had been ceded, either wholly or in part, by the
Treaties of Campo-Formio of 1797, of LuneVille of 1801,
of Presburg of 1805, by the additional Convention of
Fontainebleau of 1807, and by the Treaty of Vienna of
1809 ; the possession of which provinces and territories
His Imperial and Royal Apostolic Majesty obtained in
consequence of the last war ; such as, Istria, Austrian as
well as heretofore Venetian, Dalmatia, the ancient Venetian
Isles of the Adriatic, the Mouths of the Cattaro, the City
of Venice, with its waters, as well as all the other pro-
vinces and districts of the formerly Venetian States of the
Terra Firma upon the left bank of the Adige, the Duchies
of Milan and Mantua, the Principalities of Brixen and
Trente, the County of Tyrol, the Vorarlberg, the Austrian
Frioul, the ancient Venetian Frioul, the territory of Monte-
falcone, the Government and Town of Trieste, Carniola,
Upper Carinthia, Croatia on the right of the Save, Fiume
and the Hungarian Littorale, and the District of Castua.1
Territories united to the Austrian Monarchy.
ARTICLE XCIV. His Imperial and Royal Apostolic
Majesty shall unite to his monarchy, to be possessed by
him and his successors in full property and Sovereignty : —
i. Besides the portions of the Terra Firma in the Venetian
States mentioned in the preceding Article, the other parts
of those States, as well as all other territories situated
between the Tessino, the Po, and the Adriatic Sea.
1 By Article III of the Treaty of Peace between Austria and Italy
of October 3, 1866. the Lombardo-Venetian Kingdom was united
to the Kingdom of Italy.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 83
2. The Vallies of the Valteline, of Bormio, and of Chia-
venna.
3. The territories which formerly composed the Republic
of Ragusa.
Austrian Frontiers in Italy.
ARTICLE XCV. In consequence of the stipulations agreed
upon in the preceding Articles, the frontiers of the States
of His Imperial and Apostolic Majesty, in Italy, shall be : —
1. On the side of the States of His Majesty the King
of Sardinia, such as they were on the ist of January,
1792 ;
2. On the side of the States of Parma, Placentia, and
Guastalla, the course of the Po, the line of demarcation
following the Thalweg of the River ;
3. On the side of the States of Modena, such as they
were on ist of January, 1792 ;
4. On the side of the Papal States, the course of the Po,
as far as the mouth of the Goro ;
5. On the side of Switzerland, the ancient frontier of
Lombardy, and that which separates the Vallies of the
Valteline, of Bormio, and Chiavenna, from the Cantons of
the Grisons and the Tessino.
In those places where the Thalweg of the Po forms the
frontier, it is agreed, that the changes which the course
of the river may undergo shall not, in future, in any way
affect the property of the Islands therein contained.
Navigation of the. Po.
ARTICLE XCVI. The general principles, adopted by the
Congress at Vienna, for the Navigation of Rivers, shall be
applicable to that of the Po.
Commissioners shall be named by the States bordering
on rivers, within three months at latest after the termina-
tion of the Congress, to regulate all that concerns the
execution of the present Article.
Arrangements respecting the Mont-Napoleon at Milan.
ARTICLE XCVIL As it is indispensable to preserve, to
the establishment known by the name of the Mont-
Napoleon at Milan, the means of fulfilling its engagements
towards its creditors ; it is agreed, that the landed and
other immovable property of this establishment, in countries
c z
84 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
which formed part of the ancient Kingdom of Italy, and
have since passed under the government of different
Princes of Italy, as well as the capital belonging to the
said establishment placed out at interest in these different
countries, shall be appropriated to the same object.
The unfunded and unliquidated debts of the Mont-
Napoleon, such as those arising from the arrears of its
charges, or from any other increase of the outgoings of
this establishment, shall be divided between the territories
which composed the late Kingdom of Italy ; and this
division shall be regulated according to the joint bases of
their population and revenue.
The Sovereigns of the said countries shall appoint Com-
missioners, within the space of three months, dating from
the termination of the Congress, to arrange with Austrian
Commissioners whatever relates to this object. This
Commission shall assemble at Milan.
Estates of Modena and of Massa and Carrara.
ARTICLE XCVIII. His Royal Highness the Archduke
Francis d'Este, his heirs and successors, shall possess, in
full Sovereignty, the Duchies of Modena, Reggio, and
Mirandola, such as they existed at the signature of the
Treaty at Campo-Formio.1
The Archduchess Maria Beatrice d'Este, her heirs and
successors, shall possess, in full Sovereignty and property,
the Duchy of Massa and the Principality of Carrara, as well
as the Imperial Fiefs in La Lunigiana.
The latter may be applied to the purpose of exchanges,
or other arrangements made by common consent, and
according to mutual convenience, with His Imperial High-
ness the Grand Duke of Tuscany.
The rights of Succession and Reversion, established in
the branches of the Archducal Houses of Austria, relative
to the Duchies of Modena, Reggio, and Mirandola, and the
Principalities of Massa and Carrara, are preserved.
Parma and Placentia.2
ARTICLE XCIX. Her Majesty the Empress Maria Louisa
shall possess, in full property and Sovereignty, the Duchies
of Parma, Placentia, and Guastalla, with the exception of
1 Treaty of Campo-Forraio between France and Austria, 1797.
8 Piacenza.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 85
the districts lying within the States of His Imperial and
Royal Apostolic Majesty on the left bank of the Po.
The Reversion of these countries shall be regulated by
common consent, with the Courts of Austria, Russia,
France, Spain, England and Prussia ; due regard being
had to the rights of Reversion of the House of Austria, and
of His Majesty the King of Sardinia, to the said countries.1
Possessions of the Grand Duke of Tuscany.
ARTICLE C. His Imperial Highness the Archduke
Ferdinand of Austria is re-established, himself, his heirs
and successors, in all the rights of Sovereignty and pro-
perty, in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany and its dependencies,
which he possessed previous to the Treaty of Luneville.2
The stipulations of the second Article of the Treaty of
Vienna, of the 3rd October, I735,3 between the Emperor
Charles VI and the King of France, to which the other
Powers acceded, are fully renewed in favour of His Imperial
Highness and his descendants, as well as the guarantees
resulting from those stipulations.
There shall be likewise united to the said Grand Duchy,
to be possessed in full property and Sovereignty by the
Grand Duke Ferdinand, his heirs and descendants ; —
1. The State of the Presidii.
2. That part of the Island of Elba, and its appurtenances,
which were under the Suzeraincti of His Majesty the King
of the Two Sicilies before the year 1801.
3. The Suzerainete and Sovereignty of the Principality
of Piombino and its dependencies.
Prince Ludovisi Buoncompagni shall retain, for himself
and his legitimate successors, all the property which his
family possessed in the Principality of Piombino, and in
the Island of Elba and its dependencies, previously to the
occupation of those countries by the French troops in
1799, together with the mines, foundries, and salt mines.
The Prince Ludovisi shall likewise preserve his right of
Fishery, and enjoy an entire exemption from duties, as
well for the exportation of the produce of his Mines,
1 Parma was united to Sardinia by Decree of March 18, 1860.
1 Treaty of Luneville between France and Austria, 1801.
' For Article II of this treaty, see State Papers, vol. ii, p. 48,
foot-note.
86 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
foundries, salt mines, and domains, as for the importation
of Wood and other articles necessary for working the
mines : he shall also be indemnified by His Imperial
Highness the Grand Duke of Tuscany, for all the revenues
the family of the latter derived from the crown duties
before the year 1801. In case any difficulties should arise
in the valuation of this indemnity, the parties concerned
shall refer the decision to the Courts of Vienna- and Sar-
dinia.
4. The late Imperial Fiefs of Vernio, Montanto, and
Monte Santa Maria, lying within the Tuscan States.1
Duchy of Lucca.
ARTICLE CI. The Principality of Lucca shall be possessed
in full Sovereignty by Her Majesty the Infanta Maria
Louisa, and her descendants, in the direct male line.
The Principality is erected into a Duchy, and shall have
a form of government founded upon the principles of that
which it received in 1805.
An Annuity of 500,000 francs shall be added to the
revenue of the Principality of Lucca, which His Majesty
the Emperor of Austria, and His Imperial Highness the
Grand Duke of Tuscany, engage to pay regularly, as long
as circumstances do not admit of procuring another
establishment for Her Majesty the Infanta Maria Louisa,
her son, and his descendants. This annuity shall be specially
mortgaged upon the Lordships in Bohemia, known by the
name of Bavaro Palatines ; which, in case of the Duchy of
Lucca reverting to the Grand Duke of Tuscany, shall be
freed from this charge, and shall again form a part of the
private domain of His Imperial and Royal Apostolic
Majesty.2
Reversion of the Duchy of Lucca.
ARTICLE CII. The Duchy of Lucca shall revert to the
Grand Duke of Tuscany ; either in case of its becoming
vacant by the death of Her Majesty the Infanta Maria
Louisa, or of her son Don Carlos, and of their direct male
descendants ; or in case the Infanta Maria Louisa or her
1 Tuscany was united to the Kingdom of Sardinia by Decree of
March 22, 1860.
* Lucca was ceded to Tuscany by Treaty of October 4, 1847, and
Tuscany was annexed to Sardinia by Decree of March 22, 1860.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 87
direct heirs should obtain any other establishment, or
succeed to another branch of their dynasty.
The Grand Duke of Tuscany, however, engages, should
the said Reversion fall to him, to cede to the Duke of
Modena, as soon as he shall have entered into possession
of the Principality of Lucca, the following territories : —
1. The Tuscan districts of Fivizano, Pietra Santa, and
Barga.
2. The Lucca districts of Castiglione and Gallicano,
lying within the States of Modena, as well as those of
Minucciano and Monte-Ignose, contiguous to the country
of Massa.
Arrangements relative to the Holy See.
ARTICLE CIII. The Marches, with Camerino, and their
dependencies, as well as the Duchy of Benevento and the
Principality of Ponte-Corvo, are restored to the Holy See.
The Holy See shall resume possession of the Legations
of Ravenna, Bologna, and Ferrara, with the exception of
that part of Ferrara which is situate on the left bank
of the Po.
His Imperial and Royal Apostolic Majesty and his
successors shall have the right of placing Garrisons at
Ferrara and Commachio.
The inhabitants of the countries who return under the
Government of the Holy See, in consequence of the stipula-
tions of Congress, shall enjoy the benefit of Article XVI
of the Treaty of Paris of the 3oth May, 1814.
All acquisitions made by individuals, in virtue of a title
acknowledged as legal by the existing laws, are to be
considered as good, and the arrangements necessary for
the guarantee of the public debt and the payment of
pensions shall be settled by a particular Convention
between the Courts of Rome and Vienna.1
Restoration of King Ferdinand IV at Naples.
ARTICLE CIV. His Majesty King Ferdinand IV, his
heirs and successors, is restored to the throne of Naples,
and His Majesty is acknowledged by the Powers as King
of the Two Sicilies.
1 The Marches were annexed to Sardinia by Decree of December 17,
1860.
88 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
Affairs of Portugal. Restitution of the Town of Olivenfa.
ARTICLE CV. The Powers, recognising the justice of the
claims of His Royal Highness the Prince Regent of Portugal
and the Brazils, upon the Town of Olivenca, and the other
territories ceded to Spain by the Treaty of Badajos of
1801, and viewing the restitution of the same as a measure
necessary to insure that perfect and constant harmony
between the Two Kingdoms of the Peninsula, the pre-
servation of which in all parts of Europe has been the
constant object of their arrangements, formally engage
to use their utmost endeavours by amicable means, to
procure the retrocession of the said territories in favour
of Portugal. And the Powers declare, as far as depends
upon them, that this arrangement shall take place as soon
as possible.1
Relations between France and Portugal.
ARTICLE CVI. In order to remove the difficulties which
opposed the Ratification on the part of His Royal Highness
the Prince Regent of the Kingdoms of Portugal and the
Brazils, of the Treaty signed on the 3Oth of May, 1814,
between Portugal and France ; it is determined that the
stipulations contained in Article X of that Treaty, and all
those which relate to it, shall be of no effect, and that with
the consent of all the Powers the provisions contained in
the following Article shall be substituted for them, and
which shall alone be considered as valid : with this excep-
tion, all the other clauses of the above Treaty of Paris
shall be maintained, and regarded as mutually binding on
the Two Courts.
Restitution of French Guiana.
ARTICLE CVII. His Royal Highness the Prince Regent
of the Kingdoms of Portugal and the Brazils, wishing to
give an unequivocal proof of his high consideration for
His Most Christian Majesty, engages to restore French
Guiana to His said Majesty, as far as the river Oyapock,
the mouth of which is situated between the fourth and
fifth degree of north latitude, and which has always been
considered by Portugal as the Limit appointed by the
Treaty of Utrecht.
1 This arrangement was never carried out.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 89
The period for giving up this Colony shall be determined,
as soon as circumstances shall permit, by a Particular
Convention between the two Courts ; and they shall
enter into an amicable arrangement, as soon as possible,
with regard to the definitive demarcation of the limits of
Portuguese and French Guiana, conformably to the precise
meaning of Article VIII of the Treaty of Utrecht.
Navigation of Rivers traversing different States.
ARTICLE CVIII. The Powers whose States are separated
or crossed by the same navigable River engage to regulate,
by common consent, all that regards its navigation. For
this purpose they will name Commissioners, who shall
assemble, at latest, within 6 months after the termination
of the Congress, and who shall adopt, as the bases of their
proceedings, the Principles established by the following
Articles.
Freedom of Navigation.
ARTICLE CIX. The navigation of the Rivers, along their
whole course, referred to in the preceding Article, from the
point where each of them becomes navigable, to its mouth,
shall be entirely free, and shall not, in respect to Commerce,
be prohibited to any one ; it being understood that the
Regulations established with regard to the Police of this
navigation shall be respected, as they will be framed alike
for all, and as favourable as possible to the Commerce of
all nations.
Uniformity of System for Collection of Dues.
ARTICLE CX. The system that shall be established both
for the collection of the Duties and for the maintenance
of the Police, shall be, as nearly as possible, the same
along the whole course of the River ; and shall also extend,
unless particular circumstances prevent it, to those of its
Branches and Junctions, which, in their navigable course,
separate or traverse different States.
Regulation of the Tariff.
ARTICLE CXI. The Duties on navigation shall be
regulated in an uniform and settled manner, and with as
little reference as possible to the different quality of the
go CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
merchandise, in order that a minute examination of the
cargo may be rendered unnecessary, except with a view to
prevent fraud and evasion. The amount of the Duties,
which shall in no case exceed those now paid, shall be
determined by local circumstances, which scarcely allow
of a general rule in this respect. The Tariff shall, however,
be prepared in such a manner as to encourage commerce
by facilitating navigation ; for which purpose the Duties
established upon the Rhine, and now in force on that
River, may serve as an approximating rule for its con-
struction.
The Tariff once settled, no increase shall take place
therein, except by the common consent of the States
bordering on the Rivers ; nor shall the navigation be
burdened with any other Duties than those fixed in the
Regulation.
Offices for Collection of Dues.
ARTICLE CXII. The Offices for the collection of Duties,
the number of which shall be reduced as much as possible,
shall be determined upon in the above Regulation, and no
change shall afterwards be made, but by common consent,
unless any of the States bordering on the Rivers should
wish to diminish the number of those which exclusively
belong to the same.
Towing Paths.
ARTICLE CXIII. Each State bordering on the Rivers is
to be at the expense of keeping in good repair the Towing
Paths which pass through its territory, and of maintaining
the necessary works through the same extent in the channels
of the river, in order that no obstacle may.be experienced
to the navigation.
The intended Regulation shall determine the manner in
which the States bordering on the Rivers are to participate
in these latter works, where the opposite banks belong to
different Governments. .
Port and Harbour Dues.
ARTICLE CXIV. There shall nowhere be established
Store-house, Port, or Forced Harbour Duties (Droits d'etape,
d'echelle et de reldche forcee}. Those already existing shall
be preserved for such time only, as the States bordering
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 91
on Rivers (without regard to the local interest of the place
or the country where they are established) shall find them
necessary or useful to navigation and commerce in general.
Custom-Houses.
ARTICLE CXV. The Custom-Houses belonging to the
States bordering on Rivers shall not interfere in the duties
of navigation. Regulations shall be established to prevent
officers of the Customs, in the exercise of their functions,
throwing obstacles in the way of the navigation ; but care
shall be taken, by means of a strict Police on the bank, to
preclude every attempt of the inhabitants to smuggle
goods, through the medium of boatmen.
General Regulations to be drawn up.
ARTICLE CXVI. Everything expressed in the preceding
Articles shall be settled by a general arrangement, in which
there shall also be comprised whatever may need an
ulterior determination.
The arrangement once settled, shall not be changed, but
by and with the consent of all the States bordering on
Rivers, and they shall take care to provide for its execu-
tion with due regard to circumstances and locality.
Confirmation of Particular Regulations respecting the Naviga-
tion of the Rhine, the Neckar, the Maine, the Moselle,
the Meuse, and the Scheldt.
ARTICLE CXVII. The Particular Regulations relative to
the navigation of the Rhine, the Neckar, the Maine, the
Moselle, the Meuse, and the Scheldt, such as they are
annexed to the present Act, shall have the same force and
validity as if they were textually inserted herein.
Confirmation of the Treaties and Particular Acts annexed to
the General Treaty.
ARTICLE CXVIII. The Treaties, Conventions, Declara-
tions, Regulations, and other particular Acts which are
annexed to the present Act, viz. : —
i. The Treaty between Russia and Austria, of the
2ist April/3rd May, 1815 ;
92 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
2. The Treaty between Russia and Prussia, of the
2ist April/3rd May, 1815 ;
3. The Additional Treaty, relative to Cracow, between
Austria, Prussia, and Russia, of the 2ist April/3rd May,
1815;
4. The Treaty between Prussia and Saxony of the
i8th May, 1815 ;
5. The Declaration of the King of Saxony respecting the
rights of the House of Schonburg, of the i8th May, 1815 ;
6. The Treaty between Prussia and Hanover, of the
29th May, 1815 ;
7. The Convention between Prussia and the Grand
Duke of Saxe- Weimar, of the ist June, 1815 ;
8. The Convention between Prussia and the Duke and
Prince of Nassau, of the 3ist May, 1815 ;
9. The Act concerning the Federative Constitution of
Germany, of the 8th June, 1815 ;
10. The Treaty between the King of the Netherlands,
and Prussia, England, Austria, and Russia, of the 3ist
May, 1815 ;
11. The Declaration of the Powers on the Affairs of
the Helvetic Confederation of the 2oth March ; and the
Act of Accession of the Diet of the 27th May, 1815 ;
12. The Protocol of the 29th March, 1815, on the Cessions
made by the King of Sardinia to the Canton of Geneva ;
13. The Treaty between the King of Sardinia, Austria,
England, Russia, Prussia, and France, of the 20th May,
1815;
14. The Act entitled ' Conditions which are to serve as
the Basis of the Union of the States of Genoa with those
of His Sardinian Majesty ' ;
15. The Declaration of the Powers on the Abolition of
the Slave Trade, of the- 8th February, 1815 ;
16. The Regulations respecting the Free Navigation of
Rivers ;
17. The Regulation concerning the Precedence of Diplo-
matic Agents ;
shall be considered as integral parts of the Arrangements
of the Congress, and shall have, throughout, the same force
and validity as if they were inserted, word for word, in the
General Treaty.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 93
Invitation to the Powers assembled in Congress to accede to the
General Treaty.
ARTICLE CXIX. All the Powers assembled in Congress,
as well as the Princes and Free Towns, who have concurred
in the arrangements specified, and in the Acts confirmed,
in this General Treaty, are invited to accede to it.
Reservations as to the use of the French Language in the
drawing up of this Act.
ARTICLE CXX. The French Language having been
exclusively employed in all the copies of the present Treaty,
it is declared, by the Powers who have concurred in this
Act, that the use made of that Language shall not be con-
strued into a Precedent for the future ; every Power, there-
fore, reserves to itself the adoption in future Negociations
and Conventions, of the Language it has heretofore em-
ployed in its diplomatic relations ; and this Treaty shall
not be cited as a Precedent contrary to the established
practice.
Ratification of the Treaty and Deposit of the Original in the
Archives of the Court and State at Vienna.
ARTICLE CXXI. The present Treaty shall be ratified,
and the Ratifications exchanged in six months, and by the
Court of Portugal in a year, or sooner, if possible.
A copy of this General Treaty shall be deposited in the
Archives of the Court and State of His Imperial and Royal
Apostolic Majesty, at Vienna, in case any of the Courts of
Europe shall think proper to consult the original text of
this Instrument.
In faith of which the respective Plenipotentiaries have
signed this Act, and have affixed thereunto the Seals of
their Arms.
Done at Vienna, the gth of June, in the year of Our
Lord, 1815.
(The Signatures follow in the Alphabetical Order of the
Courts.)
AUSTRIA,
(L.S.) LE PRINCE DE METTERNICH.
(L.S.) LE BARON DE WESSENBERG.
94 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
(ESPAGNE) SPAIN.1
FRANCE,
(L.S.) LE PRINCE DE TALLEYRAND.
(L.S.) LE DUG D'ALBERG.
(L.S.) LE COMTE ALEXIS DE NOAILLES.
GREAT BRITAIN,
(L.S.) CLANCARTY.
(L.S.) CATHCART.
(L.S.) STEWART, L. G.
PORTUGAL,
(L.S.) LE COMTE DE PALMELLA.
(L.S.) ANTONIO DE SALDANHA DA GAMA.
(L.S.) D. JOAQUIM LOBO DA SILVEIRA.
PRUSSIA,
(L.S.) LE PRINCE DE HARDENBERG.
(L.S.) LE BARON DE HUMBOLDT.
RUSSIA,
(L.S.) LE PRINCE DE RASOUMOFFSKY.
(L.S.) LE COMTE DE STACKELBERG.
(L.S.) LE COMTE DE NESSELRODE.
SWEDEN,
(L.S.) LE COMTE CHARLES-AXEL DE LOWEN-
HIELM.
(Save and except the reservation made to the
Articles CI, CII, and CIV of the Treaty.)
[NOTE. — For these reservations, see State Papers, vol. ii, pp. 759,
760.]
1 Spain acceded to the treaty on June 7, 1817. She did not
sign it.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 95
ANNEX I. Treaty between Austria and Russia respecting
Poland. Signedat Vienna April 2i/May 3, 1.8I5.1 Articles
i, 2, 3, 4, 5 were embodied in the principal Treaty as, respec-
tively, 5, 3, 4, 6, and i. They had reference to the new
Austro- Russian frontiers, &c. Article 6 enabled inhabi-
tants to leave the country on its transfer. Articles 7, 8, 9
were embodied in the principal Treaty as Articles n, 12,
and 13, general amnesty and sequestrations. Articles 10
to 23, property of proprietors having estates on both sides
of boundary line. Articles 24 to 29, navigation of rivers
in Poland, tariffs, &c. (see Article 14 of principal Treaty).
Articles 30 to 40 related to loans and debts, surrender of
documents, evacuation of territories, &c.
ANNEX II. Treaty between Russia and Prussia relating
to Poland, signed at Vienna April 2i/May 3, 1815.2
Articles i, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7 are embodied in substance in the
principal Treaty as Articles 2, 6, i, n, 12, 13 respectively.
The remaining provisions of the Treaty are very similar to
those of the Austro-Russian Treaty (see Annex I).
ANNEX III. Additional Treaty between Austria,
Prussia, and Russia relative to Cracow. Signed at Vienna
April 2i/May 3, 1815. 3
Articles i, 2, 3, 6, embodied in principal Treaty as
Articles 6, 7, 8, 9. This Treaty constituted Cracow a free,
neutral, and independent town under the protection of
Austria, Prussia, and Russia, with consequent conditions
and privileges. [By a treaty between the same Powers
dated November 6, 1846, the above additional Treaty was
abrogated, the independence of Cracow was put an end to,
and the territory incorporated with Austrian dominions.
The British and French Governments protested against
this infraction of the Treaty of Vienna.4 The constitution
of Cracow, which was appended to this Annex, disappeared
with the Treaty which created it.]
ANNEX IV. Treaty between Prussia and Saxony (also
between Austria and Saxony and between Russia and
1 State Papers, vol. ii, p. 56. * Ibid., vol. ii, p. 63.
' Ibid., vol. ii, p. 74. ' Hertslet, vol. i, p. 120, foot-note.
96 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
Saxony) on the subject of territorial reconstruction. Signed
at Vienna May 18, 1815.*
Articles 2, 4, 13, 16, 21 were incorporated in the principal
Treaty as Articles 15, 16, 20, 21, and 22. They related to
territorial changes, religious property, amnesty, emigra-
tion, &c.
Article 17 concerned the navigation of the Elbe. Article
19, supply of salt from Prussia duty free. Article 22,
recognition by Saxony of sovereign rights of Austria,
Prussia, and Russia in portions of Poland, &c. [Great
Britain acceded to this Treaty.]
ANNEX V. Declaration of King of Saxony on Rights of
House of Schonburg, Vienna, May 18, 1815. Act of Accep-
tation by the five Powers, May 29, i8i5.2
ANNEX VI. Treaty (territorial), Prussia and Hanover.
Vienna, May 29, i8i5.3 Articles i, 2, 4, 5, 6 embodied in
the principal Treaty as Articles 27, 28, 29, 30, 31. Reci-
procal cessions, Prussia, Hanover, Brunswick, Oldenburg,
navigation of the Ems, debts, &c.4
ANNEX VII. Convention (territorial), Prussia and Saxe-
Weimar. Vienna, June i, i8i5.6 Article 3 was embodied
in the principal Treaty as Article 39.'
ANNEX VIII. Convention (territorial). Prussia and
Nassau. Vienna, May 31, 1815.' This convention contains
a stipulation (Article 5) relating to the fortress of Ehren-
breitstein, enabling Prussia to erect military works within
a certain radius of the fortress ' even in those communes
which may remain under the Sovereignty of the House of
Nassau '.
ANNEX IX. Act concerning the Federative Constitution
of Germany. Vienna, June 8, 1815. 8 Articles I to II, first
paragraph, are embodied in the principal Treaty as
Articles 53 to 63. This Act established a Confederation of
the Sovereign Princes and Free Towns of Germany (17 in
1 State Papers, vol. ii, p. 84. * Ibid., vol. ii, pp. 93, 94.
* Ibid., vol. ii, p. 94.
4 The Kingdom of Hanover was annexed to Prussia by Decree of
September 20, 1866 ; State Papers, vol. Ivi, p. 1067.
* State Papers, vol. ii, p. 100.
• A further Convention on the same subject was concluded
between the two Powers on September 22, 1815 ; State Papers,
vol. ii, p. 944.
7 State Papers, vol. ii, p. 102.
• Ibid., vol. ii, p. 1 14.
CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815 97
number), including Denmark for the Duchy of Holstein
and the Netherlands for the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg,
forming together the Germanic Confederation for the main-
tenance of the safety of Germany and the independence of
the confederated States. Austria was also a member of
this Confederation. A Federative Diet was formed to sit
at Frankfort, each of the 17 members having one vote, and
a General Assembly in which the number of votes to each
member was apportioned according to the respective extent
of the individual States. The Act further contained stipu-
lations on various matters bearing on the regulation of
affairs.
ANNEX X. Treaty, Great Britain, &c. and Netherlands.
Vienna, May 31, I8I5.1 Union of the Netherlands and
Belgium,2 cessions of territory, Luxemburg, boundaries,
&c. Articles i to 8 were embodied in the principal Treaty
as Articles 65 to 73. Appended to the Treaty is an Act of
the Netherlands Government of July 21, 1814, accepting
the sovereignty of the Belgian Provinces.
ANNEX XI A. Declaration (8 Powers) respecting Hel-
vetic Confederacy. Vienna, March 20, i8i5.3 Articles i
to 8 are, with certain omissions, embodied in the principal
Treaty as Articles 74, 75, 76, 77, 79, 81, 82, 83. They deal
with the integrity of the Cantons, the addition of 3 new
Cantons, and stipulations for regrouping of territory,
military roads and other internal arrangements.
ANNEX XI B. Act of Acceptance by Switzerland of the
above Declaration. Zurich, May 27, 1815. 4
ANNEX XII. Protocol (8 Powers). Vienna, March 29,
1815. 5 Cessions by Sardinia to Geneva. Passage of troops.
Protection of Catholic religion in ceded territory, &c.
ANNEX XIII. Treaty, Austria and Sardinia (also Great
Britain, Russia, Prussia, and France). Vienna, May 20,
1815. 6 Articles i to 8 embodied in principal Treaty as
Articles 85 to 92. Boundaries of Sardinia, union of Genoa,
fortifications, cessions to Geneva, neutrality of Chablais
and Faucigny, passage of troops, &c. Appended to this
1 State Papers, vol. ii, p. 136.
* This Union was dissolved by Treaties of November 15, 1831,
and April 19, 1839 ; see State Papers, vol. xviii, p. 645, and vol. xxvii,
p. 1000. This matter is subsequently dealt with in a separate
chapter: seep. 126 fi.
1 State Papers, vol. ii, p. 142. 4 Ibid., vol. ii, p. 147.
• Ibid., vol. ii, p. 149. • Ibid., vol. ii, p. 152.
1903
98 CONGRESS TREATY OF VIENNA, 1815
Annex are the conditions respecting the government of
Genoa, Geneva, &c.
ANNEX XIV. Conditions attaching to union of Genoa
with Sardinia.1
ANNEX XV. Declaration (8 Powers). Vienna, February
8, 1 815.2 Proposed universal abolition of the Slave Trade ;
to be a subject for separate negotiations between the Powers.
ANNEX XVI. Regulations. Vienna, March i8i5.3
Embodied in the principal Treaty as Articles 108 to 116.
Navigation of rivers. General arrangements, uniformity
of system, &c. The Rhine, Neckar, Maine, Moselle, Meuse,
Scheldt.
ANNEX XVII. Regulations. Vienna, March 19, i8i5.4
Concerning the Rank and Precedence of Diplomatic Agents.
The above epitome gives roughly the purport of the
seventeen Annexes to the Vienna Congress Treaty of
June 9, 1815.
1 Stale Papers, vol. ii, p. 959. * Ibid., vol. iii, p. 971.
* Ibid., vol. ii, p. 162. • Ibid., vol. ii, p. 179.
CHAPTER III
THE INDEPENDENCE OF GREECE.
Nationalism in Europe — Mediaeval Greece — Greece and the
Turks — Phanariots — Cora.es — Revolt of Greece — England
and Greece — Nicholas I — Protocol of St. Petersburg — Treaty
of 1827 — Navarino — Campaigns of Diebitsch — Treaty of
Adrianople — Capodistrias and Leopold of Saxe-Coburg — Treaty
of London, 1832 — Bavarian Regime — The Danish Dynasty —
Treaty of London, 1863 — Accessions of Territory — The Euro-
pean War — M. Venizelos — Salonika — King Constantino — The
Provisional Government.
Texts: The Treaty of London (1832) — The Protocol of London
(1830) —The Treaty of London (1863).
FOR thirty-three years after the Congress of Vienna, the
peace of Europe, though often threatened, was never
seriously disturbed. This was partly due to the aversion
from war left upon men's minds by the memory of the san-
guinary period which had been ushered in by the French
Revolution ; partly also to the efforts of the Holy Alliance
to maintain the peace of Europe by concerted action of
the Powers. But the policy of the Holy Alliance could not
be maintained against the growing sentiment of nationalism,
which by the year 1820 was showing itself to be a potent
force in Spain, Italy, and in Greece. It was in the latter
country that nationalism attained one of its earliest and
most remarkable developments in the nineteenth century.
Greece, since the great days of the fifth century before
Christ, had passed through many vicissitudes. In turn,
Romans, Byzantines, and crusading Franks had held it.
Italians from Naples, Florence, and Venice had left their
mark in Attica and the Morea. But by 1460 the whole of
11 2
ioo THE INDEPENDENCE OF GREECE
Greece had come under the Turks, whose dominion over it,
except for eighteen years of Venetian government in the
Morea (1699 to 1718), remained unbroken till the nineteenth
century had run one-quarter of its course.
In the meantime, during the Middle Ages and the later
centuries, the Greeks had not preserved the ancient purity
of their race. The Slavs had come down south of the
Balkans, and the Albanians had penetrated as far even as
Attica. The Greek language had become degraded into
patois, filled with alien words ; the glorious classics of
ancient Greece were forgotten in the land.
But in the hundred years before the War of Independence
actually broke out, forces were at work which gradually
wrought upon the modern Greeks the consciousness that
they were the heirs of an ancient heritage, that they were
a people fitted still to be free and independent.
This growth of a national sentiment was not the result
of Turkish misgovernment. The Turks have indeed never
been good administrators. Their financial and judicial
systems in Greece were in certain directions oppressive
owing to an arbitrary and corrupt element in them. Yet
the Turks, like all arbitrary but ill-organized governments,
left a considerable amount of freedom to their subjects,
and the Greeks under their rule enjoyed a considerable
share of prosperity. This prosperity was noticeable
throughout the whole of the eighteenth century.1 The
peasantry either cultivated their own land, or held it as
tenants, paying a fixed amount of the produce as rent.
Their social and economic condition was good : ' in com-
parison with the Prussian serf, the Greek cultivator at the
beginning of the eighteenth century was an independent
man ; in comparison with the English labourer, he was
well fed and well housed.' 2 Their prosperous condition
1 See Finlay, History of Greece (146 B.C.-A.D. 1864), edition 1877,
vol. v, ch. v.
* Fyffe, Modern Europe, chap, iv, edition 1892, p. 238.
GREECE
1832-1913
English Miles
102 THE INDEPENDENCE OF GREECE
made them receptive of other influences which tended to
a spiritual awakening. There were, moreover, sufficient
sources of irritation in the Turkish regime to make the
Greeks look upon their conquerors as infidel oppressors.
The Greek Church had always kept alive a certain amount
of national feeling. The lower clergy were men of the
people, married, very little above the level of those whose
spiritual needs they tended. They were superstitious and
unlearned, but had not the less on this account the sym-
pathy of their flock. The higher clergy, the bishops,
belonged to the monastic side of the Church ; they, too,
had considerable influence over the people, through the
bishops' courts, where the Turks permitted cases of both
spiritual and secular interest to be brought. The services
of the Church preserved something more of the classical
Greek language than was contained in the vernacular of
the country.
Under the Turkish regime there was almost an official
aristocracy of Greeks — wealthy families, dwelling in the
quarter of Constantinople by the Phanar lighthouse. These
' Phanariot ' Greeks regularly held important appointments
in the Turkish administration, such as that side of it which
dealt with foreign relations, with the drafting of treaties,
and such matters. Moreover, since the end of the native
tributary princes of Wallachia and of Moldavia between
1711 and 1716, the Phanariot Greeks had by purchase se-
cured the ' farm ' of the governorship of the Principalities.
The Phanariots were well-educated and often able men,
who did much by establishing schools to spread the feeling
of Hellenism throughout their countrymen. In this work,
at the end of the eighteenth century, they were much
helped by wealthy Greeks who had established themselves
in Odessa, a city which was founded by the Russians in
1794, and where Greek merchants established a great hold
upon the corn-trade.
The one man who did more than any other to train and
REVOLT OF GREECE 103
develop the comparatively small germ of national feeling
which existed before his time among the Greeks was
Adamantos Coraes, who devoted his long life to re-creating
Greek literature and spreading the knowledge of the
ancient Hellenic classics. This great scholar lived from
the year 1748 to ^i 833, and from the year 1789 resided at
Paris, an observer of the French Revolution and of the
reverberations of that remarkable event in Western Europe.
Spiritual things are more potent than material, and it is
impossible to over-estimate the effect of the scholarship of
Coraes. Expensive editions of Homer and Aristotle may
not appear at first sight to be the best means of rousing an
ignorant and half- Slavonic people to a sense of community
with the free ancient Greeks whose language they did not
understand. But Greek studies had never been really dead
among thePhanariots at anytime in the eighteenth century.1
Coraes had something to build upon, and gradually he not
merely extended the knowledge of ancient Greek literature,
with all the political ideals that it contained, but he also
created a literary language for the modern Greeks, a vehicle
for the transmission of knowledge, purer than the debased
patois of the peasants, but not so archaic as to be unsuitable
for the needs of modern men.
By the end of the Napoleonic Wars, Greece was ready
to revolt. There was a large mercantile marine, manned
by the hardy islanders of the Aegean, sailing largely under
the Russian flag, monopolizing a great part of the commerce
of the Black Sea and the Levant. The powerful secret
society, the Hetaeria Philike, founded by the wealthy
enlightened Greeks of Odessa in 1814, did much to spread
the seeds of revolt. In 1820 Alexander Ypsilanti, who
belonged to a distinguished Phanariot family, and had
risen to be a major-general in the service of the Tsar
Alexander I, was elected president of the Hetaeria Philike.
1 See Rhangabe, Histoire litltraire de la Grlce moderns (Paris,
1877) ; Coraes, Autobiography (in Greek), Athens, 1891.
104 THE INDEPENDENCE OF GREECE
Next year, March 6, 1821, he crossed the Pruth with his
following of Greek officers from the Russian service. The
revolt was ill-timed and ill-conducted. Some temporary
success was attained in the Principalities, but before June
was out the Turks had driven him across the frontier into
Austrian territory, where he was imprisoned for the next
seven years, and then released to die in poverty. The
revolt was thus suppressed in Wallachia and Moldavia, but
it broke out simultaneously in the Morea and soon spread
throughout all Greece. But it had no great success for
some years yet. For when the Porte had succeeded in
subduing their rebellious Pasha, Ali of Yanina, their forces
were too much for the divided, ill-organized Greeks. Nor
did the Powers of Europe give them any encouragement
or support.
For five years war went on without any decisive result.
The peasant-soldiers of the Greek mainland and the hardy
islanders by sea proved themselves to be good fighters.
Yet the war was not more creditable to the Greeks than
to the Turks ; it became a war of religion and of race,
disgraced by terrible massacres on either side. The Greeks
themselves could not agree, and at times there was open
civil war among them.
The public opinion of Europe was in favour of the Greek
national cause, but the Governments at first were against
it. In 1821 Castlereagh still directed British foreign policy,
and was anxious to maintain the existing state of affairs,
fearful of another general conflagration such as Europe
had passed through after the French Revolution. Metter-
nich was still the guiding spirit of the Holy Alliance, and
prevented Alexander I of Russia from giving support to
the Greeks.
In 1822 Castlereagh died by his own hand, and was
succeeded as Foreign Secretary by the liberal-minded
Canning. British volunteers, such as the poet Byron, the
soldier Church, the sailor Cochrane, who in their different
NICHOLAS I 105
ways gave most valuable help, joined themselves to the
Greek cause. Yet the year 1825 closed with the Greek
cause standing lower than ever, for Sultan Mahmud had
called in the support of his independent Pasha, Mehemet
Ali of Egypt, whose able son Ibrahim reconquered the
Morea. The British Government had felt bound to
prohibit its subjects from taking any part in the war.1
But at the end of the year (December i, 1825) Tsar
Alexander I of Russia died, giving place to his younger
brother, the determined and energetic Nicholas I, who
gradually and in the end decisively made his influence felt
upon the destinies of Greece.
The Tsar Nicholas was no democrat, but as the head of
Russia his interests lay in striking at Turkish power in
Europe, and in helping the Orthodox Greek subjects of the
Porte. Canning, unlike Nicholas, was both liberal-minded
and the inheritor of a tradition, then just becoming firmly
established, of friendship with Turkey and support of Turkey
in Europe. Yet he had sympathy with national ideals and
with Greek aspirations, and the public opinion of England
was with him. He decided to approach Nicholas, and
accordingly in 1826 sent the Duke of Wellington to Petro-
grad. The Duke, a strong Conservative, a firm upholder
of constituted authority, had no liking for a mission in
favour of the rebel Greeks. Yet when asked to go to
Petrograd, his simple creed of duty admitted of no alter-
native. Once he made up his mind to carry out the mission,
no man was better fitted for it. His character was natur-
ally congenial to Nicholas, and it did not take them long
to come to an understanding. On April 4, 1826, the Pro-
tocol of St. Petersburg was signed.2
1 Proclamation with penalties attaching, September 30, 1825, in
Hertslet. vol. i, No. 125. This was apparently merely the usual
Proclamation of Neutrality issued under the provisions of the
Foreign Enlistment Act (59 Geo. Ill, cap. 69). Its effect may
probably have been to recognize the Greeks as belligerents.
1 Hertslet, vol. i, No. 129.
106 THE INDEPENDENCE OF GREECE
By this arrangement Great Britain and Russia agreed
to offer their mediation to the Porte with a view to placing
Greece in the position of a Dependency of Turkey. The
Greeks ' should pay to the Porte an annual Tribute ', and
' should be exclusively governed by authorities to be
chosen and named by themselves, but in the nomination
of which authorities the Porte should have a certain
influence '-1 If the Porte should reject the proffered media-
tion, Great Britain and Russia were still to consider this
scheme as the basis of any settlement ' to be effected by
their intervention, whether in concert or separately '.a
Next year France gave its adhesion to the policy laid
down in the Protocol of St. Petersburg. On July 6, i827,3
the three countries concluded a formal treaty embodying
the provisions of that document. To this were added some
important clauses. If the Turks refused the mediation
the Allies would take steps to recognize Greek indepen-
dence by appointing consular agents to Greece. If neither
side would agree to an armistice, the Allies would take
steps to prevent a collision between them, ' without, how-
ever, taking any part in the hostilities between the Two
Contending Parties '.
The Treaty of London was Canning's last achievement.
He had only become Prime Minister, in succession to the
venerable Earl of Liverpool, in April. In August he him-
self died. Lord Goderich became Prime Minister. It was
during this statesman's term of office that the momentous
battle of Navarino occurred.
An armistice had been proposed to the belligerents ; this
the Greeks had, naturally, accepted readily, but the Turks
had refused. Accordingly the Allied admirals in the
Mediterranean, in accordance with their instructions,
resolved to put pressure on the Porte. On October 20 the
English, French, and Russian squadrons sailed into the
» Hertslet, Article I. * Ibid., Article III.
* Treaty of London : Hertslet, vol. i, No. 136.
TREATY OF ADRIANOPLE 107
Bay of Navarino, the ancient Pylus, on the south-east coast
of the Morea. The object of the admirals was to parley
with the Turkish commander and to persuade him to an
armistice. The Turkish chief, Ibrahim Pasha, was at the
time away with his land forces, devastating the Morea.
The colloquy with the Turks in Navarino Bay ended, as it
was practically certain to do, with hostile acts on the part
of the Turkish captains. The Allied fleet was in battle
order, ready for such an emergency. A general conflict
ensued, and by the end of the day the Egyptian fleet was
destroyed.
This great battle saved Greece, for although the main-
land was now overrun by the Turks, they could not touch
the Islands, the real strongholds of the Greek cause. Yet
its immediate results were disappointing. Admiral Cod-
rington, who as senior officer was in command of the Allied
fleet, wished to force the Dardanelles (then quite a feasible
operation), and by appearing off Constantinople, to compel
the Porte to accept the Treaty of London. But Canning's
vigorous hand was no longer at the helm of the ship of
state. Lord Goderich resigned. The Duke of Wellington
became Prime Minister, resolved that he would intervene
no further. The inaction of Britain, however, made very
little difference to Greece now ; it only meant that Russia
would gain the laurels which Britain should have shared
with her. On April 20, 1828, Tsar Nicholas began war
upon Turkey. The campaign of this year was a failure,
but in 1829 the soldierly qualities of Diebitsch quickly
made themselves felt. The passage of the Balkans was
forced, and on September 14 the Porte accepted terms of
peace at Adrianople.1 By Article X of this treaty Turkey
agreed to adhere to the Treaty of London, 1827, in which
Great Britain, Russia, and France denned their scheme
for the settlement of Greece.
The independence of Greece was thus achieved. While
1 Hertslet, vol. i, No. 145.
roS THE INDEPENDENCE OF GREECE
the Russians had been fighting in Bulgaria, the Greeks in
the Morea, aided by a French expedition sent in 1828,
had reconquered that region. On February 3, 1830, the
three Powers, Great Britain, France, and Russia, by a
protocol entered into at London, carried into effect the
declared intention of their Treaty of 1827. The Porte,
by Article X of the Treaty of Adrianople, had agreed to
such a course of action on the part of the Powers. But
the Protocol of 1830 l secured to Greece far better terms
than the Treaty of 1827 had outlined, for in the interval
the Turks had been defeated by land and sea, had lost the
whole of Greece south of the Gulf of Corinth and a con-
siderable tract to the north of the Gulf, and had been faced
with the prospect of seeing a Russian army before the walls
of Constantinople. Their chance of keeping the Greeks
tributary had therefore passed away. The Protocol of
London, 1830, declared Greece to be a completely inde-
pendent State. It was to be a monarchy, under a Sovereign
Prince, who should not be a member of the reigning families
of any of the Powers signatory of the Treaty of 1827. Since
1827 the President of the Greek Government had been the
able and patriotic Capodistrias. On February n, 1830,
the crown was accepted by Leopold of Saxe-Coburg (sub-
sequently King Leopold I of Belgium), but he never came
to his adopted country, for he renounced it in May of the
same year. Capodistrias therefore remained President, but
was himself assassinated in October 1831. His death was
followed by another troubled period in Greece, till on
May 7, 1832, the three Powers made their final act, the
well-known Treaty of London, which definitely secured
Greek independence, on a substantial footing.
The preamble to this treaty refers to the desire which
the Greek leaders had on various occasions expressed to
the three Powers that they would intervene to effect
a settlement between Greece and Turkey. The Turks,
1 Hertslet, vol. ii, No. 149.
TREATY OF LONDON, 1832 icg
naturally, had refused such mediation, as long as their
arms were successful. But the battle of Navarino and
the campaign of General Diebitsch had put an end to the
Turks' chances of subduing Greece, and this they had
definitely recognized when they concluded the Treaty of
Adrianople. The Protocol of London, 1830 (p. 108), had
made Greece independent under the guarantee of the three
Powers, and is referred to in Articles IV and VI of the 1832
Treaty. The Treaty of 1827 had declared that Greece
should be tributary to Turkey : the Turks refused this.
The Protocol of 1830 had declared that Greece should be
independent under a Sovereign Prince. Finally, the 1832
Treaty made Greece a kingdom.
By Article I the crown was offered to a prince of the
ancient House of Wittelsbach, Frederick Otho, second son
of King Ludwig I of Bavaria. Article IV placed the inde-
pendence of Greece under the guarantee of Great Britain,
France, and Russia ; this guarantee is referred to and con-
tinued in the Treaty of London, July 13, I863.1 Article V
leaves the Greek boundaries to be settled by negotiations
which were then going on between the three Powers and Tur-
key. Article VIII contains the stipulation, usual in treaties
regarding the establishment of a dynasty belonging to an
already reigning house, that the two crowns are never to
be united. Three other points of permanent interest appear
in the treaty : by Article XII the three Powers engaged,
the Emperor of Russia by his autocratic power, Great Britain
and France with the consent of their legislative bodies, to
guarantee the interest and sinking fund of a loan to be
raised by Greece. Article XIII refers to a pecuniary
indemnity to Turkey, for loss of territory owing to the
establishment of Greek independence. Articles XIV and
XV declared that a small body of troops and officers should
be brought from Bavaria to Greece, to assist in its organi-
zation.
1 See pp. 123-125.
no THE INDEPENDENCE OF GREECE
Under the conditions of Article XII Greece raised a loan
of 60,000,000 francs ; in 1857, owing to the failure of the
Greek Government to meet the charges for interest and
sinking fund, Great Britain, France, and Russia had to
supply the necessary funds. In 1860 an arrangement was
come to by which Greece should begin again to contribute
towards the discharge of her obligations, by paying £12,000
per annum to each of the three Powers, who were dis-
charging her loan. This arrangement is still in force, but,
during the lifetime of King George, the three Powers,
under the Treaty of March 29, 1864, annually gave back
£4,000 each as an addition to the Civil List of the Greek
Crown.
The indemnity referred to in Article XIII was fixed at
40,000,000 piastres, in the boundary treaty between Great
Britain, France, and Russia on the one part, and Turkey on
the other, concluded on July 21, 1832. This sum, equal to
about £375,000, was not of course compensation to Turkey
for the loss of Greece, but for losses due to individual landed
proprietors.
The presence of Bavarian officers and councillors round
King Otho gave an influence to his method of government
which was not conducive to his popularity in Greece. In
1862 his Government was overthrown by a military revolt,
and the king himself deposed by a National Assembly. In
the Treaty of 1832, Great Britain, France, and Russia had
not guaranteed King Otho and his dynasty, but only the
independence of Greece. Accordingly, when the National
Assembly elected Prince William of Schleswig-Holstein-
Sonderburg-Gliicksburg (second son of Christian IX of
Denmark) as king, Great Britain, France, and Russia
agreed to this by another Treaty of London, July 13, 1863.
The new king was to take the title of George I, King of the
Greeks (Article II), but later in the same year it was altered
to King of the Hellenes.1 By Article III, Greece, under
> This Treaty is in Hertslet, vol. ii, No. 347.
ACCESSIONS OF TERRITORY in
the sovereignty of Prince William of Denmark, and the
guarantee of the three Courts, forms a monarchical, inde-
pendent, and constitutional State.
The boundary of Greece as settled by the negotiations
referred to in Article V of the Treaty of May 7, 1832,
included only some 750,000 of the Hellenic race. The con-
tinental boundary ran from the Gulf of Volo to the Gulf of
Arta, that is to say, from a point on the mainland north of
the Island of Euboea, on the east of Greece, to a point just
north of Acarnania on the west.1 A previous convention
had defined the insular possessions of Greece as the Island
of Euboea or Negropont and the Cyclades.2 All this was
indeed but a very small part of the ancient Hellas. By
the Treaty of London, 1863, when the three Powers recog-
nized the succession of the Prince of Denmark, Great Britain
also gave to Greece the Ionian Islands,3 which had been
a British protectorate since 1815. During the Crimean War,
and again in the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-8, Greece
had attempted to increase her continental boundaries at
the expense of Turkey. The Congress of Berlin listened
to Greek delegates, but Greece gained nothing by the
Treaty of Berlin. Her affairs were now in the hands of all
the six Great Powers of Europe, and through their influence
Turkey was induced to give up Thessaly to Greece in i88i.4
The French Minister of Foreign Affairs, W. H. Waddington,
greatly contributed to this result. The disastrous war
of 1897 with Turkey left Greece with a worse position
on the Thessalian frontier and completed her national
bankruptcy, which happened the same year. In 1912-13,
1 Treaty between Great Britain, France, and Turkey (Constanti-
nople), July 21, 1832. Hertslet, vol. ii, No. 161.
1 Ibid., No. 142. March 22, 1829.
1 See also Treaty between Great Britain, France, Russia, and
Greece (London), March 29, 1864. Hertslet, vol. iii, No. 357.
• Treaty between the six Powers and Turkey (Constantinople).
May 24. 1 88 1. Hertslet, vol. iv. No. 584. By this rectification of
her frontier Greece acquired something like 14,000 square miles of
new territory.
112 THE INDEPENDENCE OF GREECE
however, Greece was more successful, and by the Treaties
of London and Bucharest obtained a valuable part of
Macedonia, including Salonika. She retained possession
of important islands, taken by her navy in the First
Balkan War (1912-3) , and of Crete. To complete the limits
of ancient Hellas, she would have to add certain other
islands, and the coast-land of Asia Minor, the classic Ionia.
During the period when M. Venizelos was Premier, Greece
made enormous progress in every direction. At the out-
break of war in August 1914, Greece and Turkey were
themselves almost on the point of war over their contend-
ing interests. When Turkey threw in her lot with the
Central Powers, it was M. Venizelos's hope that by aiding
in the expulsion of the Ottoman Empire from Europe, he
might be able to re-establish something like ancient Hellas,
a nation in Greece, the Islands, and the western coast of
Asia Minor.1 He was, however, prevented from throwing
Greece into the war by King Constantine, who, in the dark
days of 1915, saw no reason to count on the ultimate
triumph of the Entente Powers. He was, in fact, accord-
ing to a telegram from himself to Berlin of July 25/Aug. 5,
1914, disclosed in the Diplomatica Engrapha 1913-1917
1 See Speech of M. Venizelos, August 27, 1916 (published by the
Anglo-Hellenic League, 1916) :
" 'Avri rd i-ntKraOufjifv (Is rty tAiKpav 'Afftav, KOI TTJV Qpaicrjv KOI r^v
Kvtrpov, \vovrts rf\fi<aTiKUS rds virtpxt\i(T(ts 5taij>r>pds fias /^ TONS Svo
iOviKovs (MS fx^povs KOI SrjfuovpfovvTfS 'EAAaSa /it-yaAiji/ KCU ia\vpa.t> teal
ir\ovoiav, uvTairoKpivofi.ivqv th rd. iiif/iirtTtarfpa iOviKO. ovtipa, 0\(irofitv TOVS
BowA-ydpovj vd tlatXavvow €ty T^V 'l£,\\r)ViK})V ~M.dKtdovia.v, va Karakanfldvovv
Kal TT,V vircuOpov x^Pav "^ r°-S v6\tts «qt r& <ppovpta /*as, vd. cux/*aAa>Ti£ow
^ iicfi TpTina-ra. TOV 'E\\r]vtKov arparov, \eupls vci (vpaKajftfOa irpds TOVS
tir«8po/i«rs ovT( (h Krjpvyutvov OUT* fh dKTjpvKrov ir6\ffiov «aj tvS> /*5.s vapt-
\ovrat vir avrwv irpoy (/jnraiypov al <pt\iKUiTtpcu 5ia/3f/3aiw(T««s."
' Instead of expanding in Asia Minor, in Thrace, and in Cyprus ;
instead of settling the differences of more than a thousand years
with our two national enemies, and calling into being a Hellas great
and rich and powerful, corresponding to the highest nights of our
national aspirations — we see the Bulgarians overrunning Greek
Macedonia, occupying the open country and our towns and our
fortresses, imprisoning the local detachments of the Greek Army,
while we ourselves are not even in a state of either declared or
undeclared war towards the invaders, who continue to mock us
with the assurances of their friendship.'
M. VENIZELOS 113
(p. 48), upholding ' a neutrality which would be useful to
Germany '.
At the beginning of October, 1915, General von Mackensen
began his great campaign against Serbia. On October 7,
Bulgaria joined the Central Powers and invaded Serbia.
The Serbs called on Greece to fulfil her obligations under
a defensive alliance which the two States had concluded
after the Second Balkan War.1
On September 25, 1915, M. Venizelos had asked the
English and French ministers whether, in the event of
Bulgaria making war upon Serbia, Great Britain and
France would provide the 150,000 men which under the
Serbo-Greek Treaty Serbia was bound to put in the field.
Greece could provide her contingent, but Serbia, having
already mobilized all her forces, could do no more. The
British and French Governments at once agreed to under-
take Serbia's obligations. This appears to be as far as
matters went between the Allies and M. Venizelos up to
the time of the landing of Allied troops at Salonika, which
began on October 2. According to M. Venizelos' s own
account, which there is no reason to doubt, he was surprised
by the landing, and had neither invited it nor consented to it.2
The justification of the Allies' landing at Salonika does
not lie, therefore, in any invitation of M. Venizelos, but
in the rights which by treaty the Allies possessed. The
documents on which those rights depended were the
Protocol of February 3, 1830, the Treaty of May 7, 1832,
and the Treaty of July 13, 1863. The Protocol stipulates,
by Article VIII, that
No troops belonging to one of these Contracting
Powers shall be allowed to enter the territory of the New
Greek State without the consent of the two other Courts
1 The treaty was made on May lo-June i, 1913. It was published
as a White Book by the Venizelos Government on August 18, 1917.
See Diplomatika Engrapha (AurAcu/iaTiKd'E-y-ypcK/xi), 1913—17, pp. 6-21.
1 See article in The New Europe, November 9, 1916, by R. M.
Burrows, ' Absolutism in Greece and our Treaty Rights ',
1903 j
H4 THE INDEPENDENCE OF GREECE
who signed the Treaty [i. e. the Treaty of July 6, 1827,
see p. 106].
This protocol was agreed to by the Porte and by the
Greek Government, and the guarantee of 1832 was by
treaty declared to depend upon its terms.
Greece under the sovereignty of Prince Otho of Bavaria
and under the guarantee of the three Courts, shall form
a monarchical and independent State, according to the
terms of the Protocol signed between the said courts, on
the 3rd February 1830, and accepted both by Greece
and by the Ottoman Porte.
By these Acts, Great Britain, France, and Russia
guaranteed the independence of Greece, but bound them-
selves only to land troops to maintain that guarantee with
the assent of the guaranteeing Powers. The guarantee
could be put into effect only if Greece was ceasing to be
monarchical and independent. In 1863, however, this new
treaty of guarantee inserted a fresh condition :
Greece under the sovereignty of Prince William of
Denmark and the guarantee of the three Courts, forms
a monarchical, independent, and constitutional State.
The guarantee was thenceforth to become operative if
Greece was in danger of losing her independence or her
monarchical or constitutional government. The Allies
could therefore claim in the autumn of 1915 that although
Greece was remaining monarchical, its independence was
in danger, owing to action of the Central Powers, and that
it was ceasing to be constitutional, and was becoming
absolutist.1 For King Constantine dismissed M. Venizelos,
1 Dr. Burrows (loc. cit.) points out that the British Foreign Office
in the Parl. Paper recording ' Treaties containing guarantees or
engagements by Great Britain in regard to the territory or govern-
ment of other countries' (Cd. 9088, July 1898), quotes the Protocol
of 1830, but omits the clause respecting armed intervention. He
suggests that this omission may account for the fact that the British
Government, after the landing at Salonika in October 1915, gave the
' invitation ' of M. Venizelos as justification. This is unfortunate,
as M. Venizelos did not intend to convey an invitation, while the
treaty rights of the Allies amply justify the intervention.
KING CONSTANTINE 115
and had a new Cabinet formed. The Chamber was Veni-
zelist, but the King dissolved it, and proceeded to have
a General Election, while the army, which had been
mobilized on September 23, was still under arms. The
Venizelists consequently abstained from taking part, and
the non-interventionists gained a majority in the Chamber.
The appeal of Serbia was disregarded, on the ground that
the defensive treaty had been made to safeguard her from
Bulgaria only, not from a general combination such as the
European war involved. The real reason probably lies in
the speed with which Marshal von Mackensen was over-
running Serbia. King Constantine's view of his responsi-
bilities prevented him from going to the assistance of
a defeated and practically powerless ally. The Diplomatika
Engrapha (under date of May 9, 1916) shows that the
Skouloudes Government were aware of the intention of the
Germano-Bulgarians to seize Rupel.
In the summer of 1916, under pressure from the Allies,
King Constantine agreed that the Greek Army should be
demobilized, and that a General Election should be held
among the whole people, in order to ascertain the views
of the country, according to the terms of the Constitution.
Before the election took place, the occupation of the Greek
towns of Kavalla and Fiorina by the Bulgarians had made
it necessary for the Allies to formulate their demands
more clearly to the Greek Government. Accordingly on
September 2, 1916, they presented a Note, demanding
that all German and Austrian political agents should be
made to leave Greek territory, and that the wireless
stations, posts, and telegraphs, through which the Central
Powers had been receiving information, should be given
over to the control of the Allies. In these demands the
Greek Government acquiesced. The reply of the German
authorities to this move was to deport a Greek Army
Corps, which had remained at Kavalla (September 15).
A fortnight earlier the Revolution had been started at
I 2
n6 THE INDEPENDENCE OF GREECE
Salonika, and a Provisional Government of Venizelists
established, in favour of the Allies.
On June 12, 1917, King Constantine ' conforming to
a demand presented by M. Jonnart, as representing the
Protecting Powers of Greece ', abdicated the Greek throne
in favour of his second son, Alexander.1 The Provisional
Government became merged in the National Government.
CONVENTION BETWEEN GREAT BRITAIN, FRANCE, AND
RUSSIA, ON THE ONE PART, AND BAVARIA ON THE
OTHER, RELATIVE TO THE SOVEREIGNTY OF GREECE.
SIGNED AT LONDON, 7TH MAY, 1832.2
ARTICLE I. The Courts of Great Britain, France, and
Russia, duly authorised for this purpose by the Greek
nation, offer the hereditary Sovereignty of Greece to the
Prince Frederick Otho of Bavaria, second son of His
Majesty the King of Bavaria.
ARTICLE II. His Majesty the King of Bavaria, acting
in the name of his said son, a minor, accepts, on his behalf,
the hereditary Sovereignty of Greece, on the conditions
hereinafter settled.
ARTICLE III. The Prince Otho of Bavaria shall bear the
title of King of Greece.
ARTICLE IV. Greece, under the Sovereignty of the Prince
Otho of Bavaria, and under the Guarantee of the 3 Courts,
shall form a monarchical and independent State, according
to the terms of the Protocol signed between the said Courts
on the 3rd February, 1830, and accepted both by Greece
and by the Ottoman Porte.
ARTICLE V. The limits of the Greek State shall be such
as shall be definitively settled by the negotiations which
the Courts of Great Britain, France, and Russia have
recently opened with the Ottoman Porte, in execution of
the Protocol of 26th of September, 1831.
ARTICLE VI. The 3 Courts having beforehand deter-
mined to convert the Protocol of the 3rd of February, 1830
into a Definitive Treaty, as soon as the negotiations relative
to the limits of Greece shall have terminated, and to com-
1 The Times newspaper, June 14, 1917.
• State Papers, vol. xix, p. 33 ; Hertslet, vol. ii. No. 159.
CONVENTION OF 1832 117
municate such Treaty to all the States with which they
have relations, it is hereby agreed that they shall fulfil
this engagement, and that His Majesty the King of Greece
shall become a Contracting Party to the Treaty in question.
ARTICLE VII. The 3 Courts shall, from the present
moment, use their influence to procure the recognition of
the Prince Otho of Bavaria as King of Greece, by all the
Sovereigns and States with whom they have relations.
ARTICLE VIII. The Royal Crown and dignity shall be
hereditary in Greece ; and shall pass to the direct and
lawful descendants and heirs of the Prince Otho of Bavaria,
in the order of primogeniture. In the event of the decease
of the Prince Otho of Bavaria, without direct and lawful
issue, the Crown of Greece shall pass to his younger brother,
and to his direct and lawful descendants and heirs, in the
order of primogeniture. In the event of the decease of the
last-mentioned Prince also, without direct and lawful issue,
the Crown of Greece shall pass to his younger brother, and
to his direct and lawful descendants and heirs, in the
order of primogeniture.
In no case shall the Crown of Greece and the Crown of
Bavaria be united upon the same head.
ARTICLE IX. The majority of the Prince Otho of
Bavaria, as King of Greece, is fixed at the period when he
shall have completed his 2oth year, that is to say, on the
ist of June, 1835.
ARTICLE X. During the minority of the Prince Otho of
Bavaria, King of Greece, his rights of Sovereignty shall be
exercised in their full extent, by a Regency composed of
3 Councillors, who shall be appointed by His Majesty the
King of Bavaria.
ARTICLE XL The Prince Otho of Bavaria shall retain
the full possession of his appanages in Bavaria. His
Majesty the King of Bavaria, moreover, engages to assist,
as far as may be in his power, the Prince Otho in his
position in Greece, until a revenue shall have been set
apart for the Crown in that State.
ARTICLE XII. In execution of the Stipulations of the
Protocol of the 2oth of February, 1830, His Majesty the
Emperor of All the Russias engages to guarantee, and
their Majesties the King of the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, and the King of the French, engage
to recommend, the former to his Parliament, and the
n8 THE INDEPENDENCE OF GREECE
latter to his Chambers, to enable their Majesties to guar-
antee, on the following conditions, a Loan to be contracted
by the Prince Otho of Bavaria, as King of Greece.
1. The principal of the Loan to be contracted under the
guarantee of the 3 Powers, shall not exceed a total amount
of 60,000,000 of francs.
2. The said Loan shall be raised by instalments of
20,000,000 of francs each.
3. For the present, the first instalment only shall be
raised, and the 3 Courts shall each become responsible for
the payment of one-third of the annual amount of the
interest and sinking fund of the said instalment.
4. The second and the third instalments of the said
Loan may also be raised, according to the necessities of
the Greek State, after previous agreement between the
3 Courts and His Majesty the King of Greece.
5. In the event of the second and third instalments of
the above-mentioned Loan being raised in consequence of
such an agreement, the 3 Courts shall each become respon-
sible for the payment of one-third of the annual amount
of the interest and sinking fund of these two instalments,
as well as of the first.
6. The Sovereign of Greece and the Greek State shall be
bound to appropriate to the payment of the interest and
sinking fund, of such instalments of the Loan as may have
been raised under the guarantee of the 3 Courts, the first
revenues of the State, in such manner that the actual
receipts of the Greek Treasury shall be devoted, first of all,
to the payment of the said interest and sinking fund, and
shall not be employed for any other purpose until those
payments on account of the instalments of the Loan raised
under the guarantee of the 3 Courts shall have been com-
pletely secured for the current year.
The diplomatic Representatives of the 3 Courts in Greece
shall be specially charged to watch over the fulfilment of
the last-mentioned stipulation.
ARTICLE XIII. In case a pecuniary compensation in
favour of the Ottoman Porte should result from the
negotiations which the 3 Courts have already opened at
Constantinople for the definitive settlement of the limits
of Greece, it is understood that the amount of such com-
pensation shall be defrayed out of the proceeds of the Loan
which forms the subject of the preceding Article.
CONVENTION OF 1832 119
ARTICLE XIV. His Majesty the King of Bavaria shall
lend his assistance to the Prince Otho in raising in Bavaria
a body of troops, not exceeding 3,500 men, to be employed
in his service, as King of Greece, which corps shall be
armed, equipped, and paid by the Greek State, and be
sent thither as soon as possible, in order to relieve the
troops of the Alliance hitherto stationed in Greece. The
latter shall remain in that country entirely at the disposal
of the Government of His Majesty the King of Greece,
until the arrival of the body of troops above mentioned.
Immediately upon their arrival the troops of the Alliance
already referred to shall retire, and altogether evacuate
the Greek territory.
ARTICLE XV. His Majesty the King of Bavaria shall also
assist the Prince Otho in obtaining the services of a certain
number of Bavarian officers, who shall organize a national
military force in Greece.
ARTICLE XVI. As soon as possible after the signature
of the present Convention, the 3 Councillors who are to be
associated with His Royal Highness the Prince Otho by
His Majesty the King of Bavaria, in order to compose the
Regency of Greece, shall repair to Greece, shall enter upon
the exercise of the functions of the said Regency, and shall
prepare all the measures necessary for the reception of the
Sovereign, who, on his part, will repair to Greece with as
little delay as possible.
ARTICLE XVII. The 3 Courts shall announce to the
Greek nation, by a joint declaration, the choice which they
have made of His Royal Highness Prince Otho of Bavaria,
as King of Greece, and shall afford the Regency all the
support in their power.
ARTICLE XVIII. The present Convention shall be
ratified, and the Ratifications shall be exchanged at
London in 6 weeks, or sooner if possible.
In witness whereof the respective Plenipotentiaries have
signed the same, and have affixed thereto the Seal of their
Arms.
Done at London, the 7th May, in the year of Our Lord,
1832.
(L.S.) PALMERSTON.
(L.S.) TALLEYRAND.
(L.S.) LIEVEN.
(L.S.) MATUSZEWIC.
(L.S.) A. DE COTTO.
120 THE INDEPENDENCE OF GREECE
PROTOCOL OF CONFERENCE BETWEEN GREAT BRITAIN,
FRANCE, AND RUSSIA, RELATIVE TO THE INDEPENDENCE
OF GREECE. LONDON, 3RD OF FEBRUARY,
PRESENT : The Plenipotentiaries of Great Britain,
France, and Russia.
. . . The members of the Conference, finding that the
Ottoman declarations place them in a situation to concert
the measures which may appear to them most desirable
in the actual state of things ; and being desirous of intro-
ducing into the former arrangements of the Alliance what-
ever improvements might be best adapted to assure new
pledges of stability to the work of peace on which it is
employed, decided, by common agreement, upon the
following Articles : —
§ i. Greece shall form an independent State, and shall
enjoy all the rights, political, administrative, and commer-
cial, attached to complete independence.
§ 2. In consideration of these advantages granted to
the new State, and in deference to the desire expressed by
the Porte to obtain the reduction of the frontiers fixed
by the Protocol of the 22nd of March, the line of demarcation
of the limits of Greece shall take its departure from the
mouth of the River Aspropotamos, ascend that river as
far as the latitude of Lake Angelo Castro, and traversing
that lake, as well as those of Vrachori and Saurovitza, it
shall strike the Mount Artolina, from whence it shall
follow the ridge of Mount Oxas, the Valley of Calouri, and
the ridge of Mount (Eta, as far as the Gulf of Zeitoun,
which it shall reach at the mouth of the Sperchius.
All the territories and countries situated to the south of
this line, which the Conference has marked upon the map
hereunto annexed — Lit. F., shall belong to -Greece ; and
all the countries and territories situated to the north of
this line shall continue to form part of the Ottoman Empire.
There shall likewise belong to Greece the whole of the
Island of Negropont, with the Devil's Islands and the
Island of Skyros, and the islands anciently known by the
name of Cyclades, including the Island of Amorgo, situated
between the 36th and 3Qth degrees of north latitude,
1 State Papers, vol. xvii, p. 191. In French. English version as
presented to Parliament in T. E. Holland, The European Concert in
the Eastern Question (1885), pp. 28-32.
PROTOCOL OF CONFERENCE OF 1830 121
and the 26th degree of longitude east of the meridian of
Greenwich.
§ 3. The Greek Government shall be monarchical, and
hereditary according to the order of primogeniture. It
shall be confided to a Prince, who shall not be capable of
being chosen from among those of the families reigning
in the States that signed the Treaty of the 6th July, 1827,
and shall bear the title of Sovereign Prince of Greece. The
choice of that Prince shall form the object of subsequent
communications and stipulations.
§ 4. So soon as the Articles of the present Protocol shall
have been conveyed to the knowledge of the parties inter-
ested, peace shaU be considered as established ipso facto
between the Ottoman Empire and Greece ; and the subjects
of the two States shall be reciprocally treated, in regard
to the rights of commerce and navigation, as those of other
States at peace with the Ottoman Empire and Greece.
§ 5. Acts of full and entire amnesty shall be immedi-
ately published by the Ottoman Porte and by the Greek
Government.
The Act of amnesty of the Porte shall proclaim, that no
Greek in the whole extent of its dominions shall be liable
to be deprived of his property, or in any way disturbed, in
consequence of the part which he may have taken in the
insurrection of Greece.
The Act of amnesty of the Greek Government shall
proclaim the same principle in favour of all the Mussulmans
or Christians who may have taken part against its cause ;
and it shall further be understood and promulgated, that
the Mussulmans who may be desirous of continuing to
inhabit the territories and islands allotted to Greece, shall
preserve their properties therein, and invariably enjoy
there, with their families, perfect security.
§ 6. The Ottoman Porte shall grant to those of its Greek
subjects who may be desirous of quitting the Turkish
territory, a delay of a year, in order to sell their properties
and to depart freely from the country.
The Greek Government shall allow the same power to
the inhabitants of Greece who may wish to transport them-
selves to the Turkish territory.
§7. All the military and naval forces of Greece shall
evacuate the territories, fortresses, and islands which
they occupy beyond the line assigned in the second section
122 THE INDEPENDENCE OF GREECE
for the limits of Greece, and shall withdraw behind that
line with the least possible delay.
All the Turkish military and naval forces which occupy
territories, fortresses, or islands comprised within the limits
above mentioned, shall evacuate those islands, fortresses,
and territories ; and shall, in like manner, retire behind
the same limits with the least possible delay.
§ 8. Each of the three Courts shall retain the power,
secured to it by the 6th Article of the Treaty of the 6th of
July, 1827, of guaranteeing the whole of the foregoing
arrangements and Articles. The Act of guarantee, if there
be any, shall be drawn up separately ; the operation and
effects of these different Acts shall become, in conformity
with the above-mentioned Article, the object of further
stipulations on the part of the High Powers. No troops
belonging to one of the Contracting Powers shall be allowed
to enter the territory of the new Greek State, without
the consent of the two other Courts who signed the
Treaty.
§ 9. In order to avoid the collisions, which could not
fail to result, under existing circumstances, from bringing
Ottoman boundary Commissioners and Greek boundary
Commissioners into contact, when the line of the frontiers
of Greece comes to be laid down on the spot, it is agreed
that that task shall be entrusted to British, French, and
Russian Commissioners, and that each of the three Courts
shall nominate one. These Commissioners, furnished with
the instruction hereunto annexed, — Lit. G., shall settle
the line of the said frontiers, following, with all possible
exactness, the line pointed out in the second section ; they
shall mark out that line with stakes, and shall draw up two
maps thereof, to be signed by them, of which one shall
be given to the Ottoman Government, and the other to
the Greek Government. They shall be bound to finish
their labours in the space of six months. In case of differ-
ence of opinion between the three Commissioners, the
majority of voices shall decide.
§ 10. The arrangements of the present Protocol shall
be immediately communicated to the Ottoman Government
by the Plenipotentiaries of the three Courts, who shall be
furnished for this purpose with the common instruction
hereunto annexed, — Lit. H.
The Residents of the three Courts in Greece shall also
PROTOCOL OF CONFERENCE OF 1830 123
receive, on the same subject, the instruction hereunto
annexed — Lit. I.
§ ii. The three Courts reserve to themselves to embody
the present stipulations in a formal Treaty, which shall
be signed at London, be considered as executive of that of
the 6th of July, 1827, and be communicated to the other
Courts of Europe, with the invitation to accede thereto,
should they judge it expedient.
CONCLUSION.
Having thus arrived at the close of a long and difficult
negotiation, the three Courts sincerely congratulate them-
selves on having come to a perfect agreement, in the midst
of the most serious and delicate circumstances.
The maintenance of their union during such periods,
offers the best pledge of its permanency ; and the three
Courts flatter themselves that this union, as firm as it is
beneficial, will not cease to contribute to the confirmation
of the peace of the world.
(Signed) ABERDEEN.
MONTMORENCY-LAVAL.
LIEVEN.
TREATY BETWEEN GREAT BRITAIN, FRANCE, AND RUSSIA,
ON THE ONE PART, AND DENMARK, ON THE OTHER PART,
RELATIVE TO THE ACCESSION OF PRINCE WlLLIAM OF
DENMARK TO THE THRONE OF GREECE. SIGNED AT
LONDON, I3TH JULY, I863.1
ARTICLE I. His Majesty the King of Denmark, in accor-
dance with the Prince Christian of Denmark, acting in the
character of guardian of his second son the Prince Christian
William Ferdinand Adolphus George, accepts for that
Prince, a minor, the hereditary Sovereignty of Greece,
which is offered to him by the Senate and the National
Assembly of Greece in the name of the Hellenic Nation.
ARTICLE II. The Prince William of Denmark shall bear
the title of George I, King of the Greeks (Rot des Grecs).2
ARTICLE III. Greece, under the Sovereignty of Prince
1 State Papers, vol. liii, p. 28.
* The title of the Greek sovereign was subsequently changed to
King of the Hellenes (Protocols of August 3 and October 13, 1863;
see Hertslet, vol. ii, p. 1546, note).
124 THE INDEPENDENCE OF GREECE
William of Denmark, and the Guarantee of the 3 Courts,
forms a Monarchical, Independent, and Constitutional
State.
ARTICLE IV. The Limits of the Greek Territory, deter-
mined by the arrangement concluded at Constantinople
between the 3 Courts and the Ottoman Porte, on the
2ist July, 1832, shall receive an extension by the Union
of the Ionian Islands with the Hellenic Kingdom, when
such Union, proposed by the Government of Her Britannic
Majesty, shall have been found to be in accordance with
the wishes of the Ionian Parliament, and shall have
obtained the assent of the Courts of Austria, France,
Prussia, and Russia.
ARTICLE V. The Ionian Islands, when their Union with
the Kingdom of Greece shall have been effected, shall be
comprised in the Guarantee stipulated by Article III of
the present Treaty.
ARTICLE VI. In no case shall the Crown of Greece and
the Crown of Denmark be united on the same head.
ARTICLE VII. In conformity with the principle of the
Hellenic Constitution recognised by the Treaty signed at
London, on the 20th November, 1852, and proclaimed by
the Decree of the National Assembly of Greece, of the
3oth March, 1863, the legitimate successors of King George I
must profess the tenets of the Orthodox Church of the
East.
ARTICLE VIII. The Majority of Prince William of
Denmark, fixed by the law of the Royal Family at 18 years
complete, that is to say, on the 24th December, 1863, shall
be considered as attained before that date, if a Decree
of the National Assembly should recognise the necessity
thereof.
ARTICLE IX. At the moment when the Union of the
Ionian Islands with the Hellenic Kingdom shall take
place, according to the terms of Article IV of the present
Treaty, Her Britannic Majesty will recommend to the
Government of the United States of the Ionian Islands to
appropriate annually a sum of £10,000 sterling to augment
the Civil List of His Majesty George I, King of the Greeks
(Rot des Grecs).
ARTICLE X. Each of the 3 Courts will give up in favour
of Prince William of Denmark £4,000 a year out of the
sums which the Greek Treasury has engaged to pay annually
TREATY OF 1863 125
to each of them, in pursuance of the arrangement concluded
at Athens by the Greek Government, with the concurrence
of the Chambers, in the month of June, 1860.
It is expressly understood that these three sums, forming
a total of £12,000 sterling annually, shall be destined to
constitute a personal Dotation of His Majesty the King,
in addition to the Civil List fixed by the Law of the State.
ARTICLE XI. The Accession of Prince William to the
Hellenic Throne shall not involve any change in the
Financial Engagements which Greece has contracted by
Article XII of the Convention signed at London, on the
7th May, 1832, towards the Powers Guarantors of the
Loan.
It is equally understood that the Powers will, in concert,
watch over the execution of the engagement taken by the
Hellenic Government in the month of June, 1860, upon
the representation of the 3 Courts.
ARTICLE XII. The 3 Courts shall, from this moment,
use their influence in order to procure the recognition of
Prince William of Denmark in the character of King of
the Greeks (Roi des Grecs), by all the Sovereigns and
States with whom they have relations.
ARTICLE XIII. His Majesty the King of Denmark
reserves to himself to take the measures which may be
most proper for facilitating the arrival of King George I
in his dominions as soon as possible.
ARTICLE XIV. The 3 Courts will bring the present
Treaty to the knowledge of the Greek Government, and
will afford to that Government all the support in their
power, while awaiting the speedy arrival of His Majesty
the King.
ARTICLE XV. The present Treaty shall be ratified, and
the Ratifications shall be exchanged at London in 6 weeks,
or sooner, if possible.
In witness whereof the respective Plenipotentiaries have
signed the same, and have affixed thereto the Seal of their
Arms.
Done at London, the I3th day of July, in the year of
Our Lord, 1863.
(L.S.) RUSSELL. (L.S.) BILLE.
(L.S.) BON. GROS.
(L.S.) BRUNNOW.
CHAPTER IV
THE KINGDOM OF BELGIUM
The Burgundian Inheritance — House of Burgundy — Partition of
the Inheritance — The United Netherlands — The Spanish
(Austrian) Netherlands — The Netherlands and the French
Revolution — First Peace of Paris — Vienna Congress Act —
Kingdom of Holland and Belgium — The July Revolution —
Belgian Revolution — Leopold of Saxe-Coburg — Protocol of
twenty-four articles — Treaty of 1831 — Division of territory —
The Scheldt — The Treaty of 1839 — The Franco-Prussian War
— The Imperial Chancellor, August 1914 — Attitude of Belgian
Government towards the Guarantors — Conversations of 1906 —
The Invasion of August 2, 1914 — German offers to Belgium —
Bona fides of Belgium.
Texts i The Treaty of London (1839) — The Conversations of 1906.
THE Kingdom of Belgium is part of the famous Bur-
gundian inheritance which has exercised such a fatal
influence throughout the history of Modern Europe. Its
origins go back to the ancient Kingdom of Lorraine, which
was created by the Division of Verdun in 843, when the
Empire of Western Europe, which the mighty Charlemagne
had made, was split up into three parts. The central
portion, -Lotharingia or Lorraine, was made into a ' middle
kingdom ', stretching in one long strip from the south of
Italy to the mouths of the Rhine, bound together by chains
of mountains — the Apennines, the Jura, and the Vosges.
As the Middle Ages went on, the process of partition
was carried further and further. The ancient Lotharingia
became completely feudalized, and by the end of the
fourteenth century the northern portion of it, the valley
of the Meuse and lower Rhine, consisted of at least seventeen
practically independent feudal states, fiefs of the Holy
HOUSE OF BURGUNDY 127
Roman Empire or of the Crown of France. Within the
next half-century nearly all these fiefs, that is all the Low
Countries or Netherlands, had by one means or another
come under the dominion of the House of Burgundy.
The House of Burgundy was a cadet branch of the
French Royal House of Valois. The Duchy of Burgundy,
one of the great fiefs of the Kingdom of France, was
granted by John II of France in 1363 to his third son,
Philip. Philip's line lasted till 1477, when it ended in the
person of the Duchess Mary. In that interval, by marriage,
by purchase, by force, the Dukes of Burgundy acquired one
after another of the seventeen counties and lordships of the
Netherlands. Throughout a great part of that time, the
Burgundian power had been in close alliance with England :
Duke Philip the Good had been an ally of Henry V in the
Hundred Years' War ; Charles the Bold was an ally of
Edward IV, and married Edward's sister Margaret. When
Charles was killed before the town of Nancy in Lorraine
in 1477, he left a daughter Mary (the issue of his first wife,
Isabella of Bourbon) as the inheritor of all his dominions.
But this fortuitous aggregation of disparate fiefs could not
be held together by the hands of one weak woman. Europe
has ever since been troubled by quarrels over this inheri-
tance. ' Here,' said Louis XV of France, when visiting the
tomb of the Duchess Mary at Bruges, ' here is the origin
of all our wars.'
On the death of Charles the Bold in 1477, Louis XI of
France was able to make himself master of Ducal Bur-
gundy, but the Duchess Mary transferred the rest of her
dominions to the House of Habsburg, by marrying Maxi-
milian of Austria. The Netherlands (comprehending all
the modern Holland and Belgium) remained together
under the Habsburgs for a hundred years. In 1556 the
Emperor Charles V divided all his dominions between his
brother Ferdinand and his son Philip, who respectively
founded the Austrian and Spanish branches of the House
128 THE NEUTRALITY OF BELGIUM
of Habsburg. The Netherlands were included in the
dominions of the Spanish branch under Philip. The policy
of this monarch gave rise to the great revolt of the Nether-
lands, so graphically described by the American historian
Motley. But only the seven northern provinces of the
Netherlands were successful in shaking off the rule of
Spain. In 1579, by the Union of Utrecht, they founded
the Republic of the United Netherlands, which is now the
Kingdom of Holland. The ten southern provinces, which
were roughly equivalent to the modern Belgium, remained
under the Spanish House, and became known ultimately
as the Spanish Netherlands.
Throughout the seventeenth century the southern pro-
vinces were under Spanish rule, but in 1713 (Peace of
Utrecht), as the result of the War of the Spanish Succes-
sion, they were transferred to the Austrian Habsburgs,
and became known as the Austrian Netherlands. Under
Austrian rule they made considerable progress in material
prosperity, and undoubtedly benefited from the Habsburg-
Bourbon alliance after 1756, which prevented them from
being exposed to armies from France. The French Revolu-
tion, however, shook old Europe to its foundations, and
exposed the Austrian Netherlands to new vicissitudes. In
1792 they were overrun by the armies of the French
Republic. In 1797 they were annexed to France, and till
1814 remained under that power. On the fall of Napoleon
they were for a brief period restored to Austria, and finally,
in 1815, by the Treaty of Vienna they were joined once
more, after an interval of 235 years, to the northern
Netherlands.
The United Provinces (modern Holland), since their
separation from the Southern Provinces (modern Belgium)
in 1579, na-d remained free and independent till 1795.
Their Constitution was that of a republican federation,
with a quasi-monarchical element in the family of Orange-
Nassau. The chief member for the time being of this
HOUSE OF BURGUNDY 129
interesting House during the 215 years of the republic's
existence, was for such long periods in the position of
stadtholder or governor of several or all of the Provinces,
that the family had, in a strictly limited sense, however,
something of the position of a reigning dynasty. In 1795
the United Provinces were conquered by revolutionary
France, and were reorganized on the French model as the
Batavian Republic. In this, naturally, the House of
Orange had no part. In 1806 Napoleon converted Holland
(the name under which the old United Provinces were
henceforth to be known) into a kingdom, dependent upon
the French Empire, under his brother Louis. Louis's rule,
though in the interests of his Dutch subjects, was not
acceptable to his brother the Emperor. Therefore in 1810
Holland was incorporated in the Napoleonic Empire, and
made subject to the trade restrictions, the conscription,
and the financial burdens incidental to the Napoleonic
regime. When the Battle of Leipsic in 1813 brought
victory to the Allies, and shook the Napoleonic Empire,
the Dutch seized the opportunity to revolt, and set up
their independent State again, this time as a monarchy,
with the chief of the House of Orange as sovereign prince.
The independent Netherlands, thus re-established, was
recognized by Article VI of the First Peace of Paris,
May 30, 1814 : ' Holland, placed under the Sovereignty
of the House of Orange, shall receive an increase of terri-
tory.' This increase of territory was defined in No. IV of
the secret articles of the Peace of Paris as ' the Countries
comprised between the Sea, the Frontiers of France, such
as they are defined by the present Treaty, and the Meuse '.x
This arrangement was put into effect by the General Act
of the Congress of Vienna, June 9, 1815. By Article LXV
' the late Belgic provinces ', which it must be remembered
had never as a group had any national independence, were
joined to ' the ancient United Provinces of the Nether-
1 First Peace of Paris, May 30, 1814. Hertslet, vol. i, No. i.
1903
130 THE NEUTRALITY OF BELGIUM
lands ', and the whole was erected into a kingdom under
the Prince of Orange-Nassau, who took the title of King
William I.
The union of Holland and Belgium was the result of
a statesmanlike attempt on the part of the Congress of
Vienna to deal with a difficult problem. The Low Countries,
situated between France and the Germanic States, and
possessing harbours on the Channel and North Sea, had on
many occasions been the battle-ground of the great States
of Europe. The Belgic provinces, in particular, under
whatever master they happened to be, had never been able
to preserve their neutrality, but had been used by one
belligerent State or another in their military designs.
During the War of the Austrian Succession, Belgium was
for two years (1747-8) conquered and actually governed
by France. The same thing had happened again between
1792 and 1814. The United Provinces had been more
successful in protecting themselves, for their people were
independent in spirit, and were wealthy and statesmanlike.
The two groups, the United and Belgic Provinces, if joined
firmly together, might have formed a very substantial
State, able to defend itself, and to prevent its great neigh-
bours from using it for their military designs. If Holland
and Belgium with use and wont had gradually grown
together into one State and people, the international
condition of Europe in the nineteenth and early twentieth
centuries would have been simplified. The Dutch and
Belgians were both comfortable, peace-loving peoples, with
a high standard of civilization. Being neither able nor
disposed to carry on aggressive designs, all their interests
were in peace, which they might have been strong enough
to maintain for themselves.
But the obscure forces which produce and develop that
feeling which we call national were too strong. The Dutch
felt themselves to be one nation, the Belgians another.
History, language, religion, and, to a certain extent, race,
BELGIUM
English Miles
K 2
132 THE NEUTRALITY OF BELGIUM
all accentuated the difference between them. Between
1814 and 1830 these differences grew steadily more acute,
and were increased by the fact that throughout that time
men of Dutch birth played a far larger part in the manage-
ment of the State than did Belgians. The majority of civil
servants and military officers were Dutch. When in 1830
a revolution took place in France, it acted as an inspira-
tion to the Belgians, who forthwith proclaimed a provisional
government for themselves.
The Revolution of July 1830 in France was not
a tremendous crisis like that of 1789, yet its effects were
felt throughout Europe. The old Bourbon dynasty had
been restored to France in 1814, but never became really
popular again. Charles X, who succeeded Louis XVIII in
1824, did nothing to improve the position. His adminis-
tration was under clerical influence, and he had little sym-
pathy with parliamentary government. In July 1830,
under the advice of his chief minister the Due de Polignac,
Charles X, by the famous ' Ordinances ', suspended practi-
cally the whole Constitution which had been conferred by
Louis XVIII's ' Charter '. The result was revolution in
the middle classes of Paris, and by the end of the month
Charles X was a fugitive in England. Prince Louis Philippe,
chief of the Orleans branch of the Royal House, was elected
king in his stead.
The Revolution in France was followed next month by
another in Belgium. The two revolutions were not uncon-
nected. Belgium had been practically part of France from
1795 to 1814. Its civilization was French, the French
language was widely spread there. Between the two
countries there was much community of interest, and the
revolutionary party in France had sympathizers and active
friends in Belgium. Everything therefore conduced to
bring about a revolt when the news of the Revolution of
July reached Brussels.
The rising actually broke out in Brussels on August 25.
THE BELGIAN REVOLUTION 133
The other large towns joined the movement, and within
about one month only Antwerp remained in Dutch hands.
A national congress met at Brussels, and on November 10
proclaimed the independence of Belgium under ' a con-
stitutional and representative monarchy '. The Dutch
reigning House of Orange-Nassau was declared to be
perpetually excluded from the Belgian throne. In the
meantime representatives of Great Britain, France,
Austria, Prussia, and Russia had met in conference at
London (November 4, 1830). Anxious to have the revolu-
tionary movement settled, the Powers recognized the
independence of Belgium under a Provisional Government
(December). This was changed into a monarchy, when in
April of next year (1831) the crown of Belgium was accepted
by Prince Leopold of Saxe-Coburg. Prince Leopold, who
appears in the well-known correspondence of Queen Victoria
as her faithful friend and adviser, had been elected King
of Greece in the previous year, but had renounced that
precarious throne. Under him Belgium became the most
successful of all the experiments in State-making which
the Powers had undertaken.
It was years, however, before Holland would recognize
the secession and independence of Belgium. Only the
entry of a French army into Belgium put a stop to the
war between the two countries. At the same time the
Powers, finding Holland still unwilling to agree, took the
matter under their own control. The Conference at London^
on October 24, drew up the well-known Protocol of 24
Articles, which was embodied on November 15 in the
famous Treaty of 1831 between Great Britain, Austria,
France, Prussia, Russia, and the Kingdom of Belgium.
The division of territory between the two countries pre-
sented a great difficulty. The Kingdom of Holland repre-
sented the old seven United Provinces. The Kingdom of
Belgium had grown out of the old ' Austrian Netherlands '.
The district of Limburg historically belonged to both ; the
134 THE NEUTRALITY OF BELGIUM
northern portion, with Maestricht, had been Dutch in the
eighteenth century ; the southern portion, with the city
of Limburg itself, was in the Austrian Netherlands. Lux^m-
burg, on the other hand, had been wholly within the
Austrian Netherlands. In 1815, however, the Congress of
Vienna had made it into a Grand Duchy under the King
of the Netherlands. The Dutch, therefore, had an excellent
claim to it. It had, however, thrown in its lot with the
Belgian Revolution in 1830. The Treaty of 1831 effected
a compromise : the western portion was given to Belgium ;
the eastern portion, with the city of Luxemburg itself,
remained a Grand Duchy under the King of the Nether-
lands. Neither Holland nor Belgium was particularly
pleased with this arrangement. Limburg was also divided
between the two States ; Belgium got the old Dutch
enclaves on the left bank of the Meuse, except Maestricht,
which remained Dutch ; Holland retained all Limburg
east of the Meuse, and also a part on the left bank, to the
north of the old enclaves.*
Later events have given prominence to the position of
Holland and Belgium on the Scheldt. In effect no new
situation was set up by the Treaty of 1831 nor by that
of 1839, which merely repeated the same territorial pro-
visions. The Peace of Westphalia in 1648, which concluded
the Thirty Years' War of Germany and also the war
between the Netherlands and Spain, recognized the hold
of the Dutch over both sides of the estuary of the Scheldt.
The treaty also declared the river to be closed ; thus no
ships could pass through the estuary between the Dutch
banks, to Antwerp. The position of the Dutch on the
estuary was confirmed at the end of the War of the Spanish
Succession, by a treaty made between Great Britain, the
Estates General, and the Emperor, on November 15, 1715.
In March 1815 a treaty of the Congress of Vienna declared
1 The divisions of Luxemburg and Limburg are shown clearly in
two maps in Hertslet, vol. ii, pp. 998-9.
TREATY OF 1839 *35
the Scheldt, along with the Rhine, Neckar, Main, Moselle,
and Meuse, to be open to navigation, but the territorial
position of the Dutch on the estuary remained unchanged.
At the opening of the European War in August 1914 the
Dutch Government declared the estuary of the Scheldt to
be territorial waters of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, and
consequently that they would not permit ' the passage
across the territory situated within the territorial waters of
the Netherlands by the warships or ships assimilated thereto
of the belligerents '-1 During the siege of Antwerp in
October 1914 no attempt was made by the Allies to use
the estuary of the Scheldt for warlike purposes, but the
position of these waters in international law has never yet
been precisely acknowledged or denned.
The provisions of the Treaty of 1831 were incorporated
in the Treaty of 1839, which has since then regulated the
position of Belgium in international law. The treaty was
made between Great Britain, Austria, France, Prussia, and
Russia, on the one hand, and the Netherlands on the other.
By Article II the treaty and its annex were placed ' under
the guarantee ' of the five Powers. Holland was not one
of the guarantors. By this Article, each Power undertook
to guarantee the position of Belgium as defined by the
whole treaty. This was not a mere collective undertaking,
where the guaranteeing Powers bind themselves to act
together as one body. It was an individual obligation
imposed by each Power on itself.2 The guarantee with
respect to Luxemburg, made in 1867, was collective.3 An
individual guarantee is, if anything, more emphatic than
a collective one, but the moral obligation imposed by one
or the other is just the same. Belgium was thus put into
what was considered, by the Powers, to be the very eligible
position of a State, with its integrity and neutrality guaran-
1 Belgian Grey Book, in Collected Diplomatic Documents, p. 327.
1 See the remarks of Lord Clarendon, Hansard, June 20, 1867.
•» Seep. 258.
136 THE NEUTRALITY OF BELGIUM
teed.1 As a consequence of this, Belgium was declared
' bound to observe such neutrality towards all other States '.
This obligation Belgium honourably interpreted as involving
not merely a passive attitude of strict neutrality, but also
as carrying with it the heavy task of actually defending
herself against an aggressor by force of arms.
In 1870 it was feared that France or Prussia might be
tempted to use Belgian territory for military operations.
Accordingly, to safeguard the Treaty of 1839, Mr. Glad-
stone's Government concluded a treaty with Prussia on
August 9, 1870. In this the King of Prussia declared ' his
fixed determination to respect the neutrality of Belgium ',
and Great Britain bound herself to co-operate with Prussia,
by land and sea, to defend Belgium, if French troops
should enter that country.2 On August n the British
Government concluded a similar treaty with France to
defend Belgium, in case Prussia should violate Belgium's
neutrality. If both France and Prussia had violated this
neutrality, Great Britain might have had to go to war
with each of them.
That the Kingdom of Belgium is a neutral State, guaran-
teed in the full enjoyment of its neutrality, independence,
and integrity by the Great Powers, has never been denied.
The German Imperial Chancellor admitted this in his well-
known speech to the Reichstag on August 4, 1914.
Gentlemen, that is a breach of international law. It
is true that the French Government declared at Brussels
that France would respect Belgian neutrality as long as
her adversary respected it. We knew, however, that
France stood ready for an invasion. France could wait,
we could not. A French attack on our flank on the
1 The Belgians themselves did not wish to be neutralized. See
The Invasion and the War in Belgium, by L. van der Essen (1917),
p. ii, also The Letters of Queen Victoria (edition 1908), vol. iii, p. 172 :
The King of the Belgians to Queen Victoria : —
' This neutrality was in the real interest of this country, but our
good Congress here did not wish it, and even opposed it ; it was
impose upon them ' (February 15, 1856).
• The treaty will be found in Mowat, Select Treaties, pp. 39-41.
BELGIAN ATTITUDE 137
lower Rhine might have been disastrous. Thus we were
forced to ignore the rightful protests of the Governments
of Luxemburg and Belgium. The wrong — I speak
openly — the wrong we thereby commit we will try to
make good as soon as our military aims have been
attained.
He who is menaced as we are and is fighting for his
highest possession can only consider how he is to hack
his way through (durchhauen).1
Yet while no one has denied that under the Treaty of
1839 Belgium was a neutral and guaranteed State, doubt
has been cast upon Belgium's own impartiality. It has
been suggested that previously to 1914 she had formed
a design to join with the Entente Powers against Germany,
and that accordingly she had forfeited all right to be con-
sidered by others as a neutral State. The Treaty of 1839
contained the stipulation that Belgium should be bound
to observe her own neutrality.
The ground of accusation against Belgium does not lie
in the fact that she called upon England and France to
assist her.
Sir,
The Belgian Government regret to have to announce
to your Excellency that this morning the armed forces
of Germany entered Belgian territory in violation of
treaty engagements.
The Belgian Government are firmly determined to
resist by all the means in their power.
Belgium appeals to Great Britain, France, and Russia
to co-operate as guaranteeing Powers in the defence of
her territory.
There should be concerted and joint action, to oppose
the forcible measures taken by Germany against Belgium,
and at the same time, to guarantee the future maintenance
of the independence and integrity of Belgium. Belgium
is happy to be able to declare that she will undertake
the defence of her fortified places.2
1 German White Book in Collected Diplomatic Documents, p. 438.
1 Belgian Minister for Foreign Affairs to British, French, and
138 THE NEUTRALITY OF BELGIUM
This appeal to the other guaranteeing Powers was
a natural consequence of the obligation which the Powers
had put upon Belgium, that she should observe her own
neutrality. The guaranteeing Powers were bound to help
her, once Germany had crossed her border. It would even
have been quite correct for Belgium to invite the troops
of a guaranteeing Power to enter the country, as a pre-
cautionary measure, before the territory had been violated.
More than this, it was suggested by the British Military
Attache at Brussels in 1906 that a guaranteeing Power
could, uninvited, send a force to Belgium in order to defend
her neutrality against a State which was taking steps to
violate it. The Belgian Government, however, refused to
entertain this view. They maintained that the troops of
a guaranteeing Power could only enter the country with
the explicit consent of the Belgian Government.
The charge that Belgium. had as early as 1906 departed
from her neutrality, and taken up an attitude hostile to
Germany, is based upon certain papers found in the
archives of the Foreign Office at Brussels, after the occupa-
tion of that city by the Germans on August 20, 1914.
These papers contained a record of conversations between
the chief of the Belgian General Staff and the British
Military Attache at Brussels. The problem discussed was
the manner in which Great Britain could best co-operate
with the Belgian forces in the event of an attack upon
Belgium by Germany. ' Should Belgium be attacked, it
was proposed to send 100,000 men.' In another interview
the two officers ' examined the question of combined
operations, in the event of a German attack directed
against Antwerp '.l
The conversations, when first published in the Nord-
Russian Ministers at Brussels, August 4, 1914 ; Belgian Grey Book,
in Collected Diplomatic Documents, pp. 321-2.
1 See Belgian Grey Book, in Collected Diplomatic Documents,
pp. 354-60. Also Aktenstucke zum Kriegsausbruch. Herausgegeben
vom Auswartigen Amte, pp. 58, 62.
CONVERSATIONS OF 1906 139
deutsche Allgemeine Zeitung on October 13, 1914, created
considerable surprise, but as soon as the documents were
seriously studied they were seen to constitute no departure
from neutrality on the part of Belgium, and no intention
to violate that neutrality on the side of England or France.
The Treaty of 1839 had imposed upon Belgium the heavy
burden of defending her territory against any State, how-
ever powerful, which should try to get a passage for troops,
or a base of operations in her territory. Such defence, on
the part of Belgium, could be of no avail without co-
operation with the Powers which had guaranteed to stand
by her, under the Treaty of 1839. She was therefore not
merely at liberty, but morally obliged to concert a plan
for such combined operations in her own defence. There-
fore, with regard to the conversations between the Chief
of the Belgian General Staff and the British Military
Attache, the only question which the Belgian Government
can be called on to answer, is this : when they concerted
a scheme for operations along with Great Britain against
a possible attack by Germany, why did they not make
a complementary agreement with Germany, for concerted
operations against a possible attack by Great Britain or
France ?
Such a method would have been in line with the policy
pursued by Lord Granville, the British Secretary of State
in 1870, when he concluded the treaty to join France, if
the Germans crossed the Belgian frontier, and to join
Prussia against France, if the French invaded Belgium.
That the Belgian Government did not have conversations
'all round' in 1906, was because they had reason to believe
that no danger threatened them from France or England,
but that serious danger threatened them from Germany.
The events which took place in the summer of 1914 indicate
that conversations between the Belgian and German
General Staffs would only have supplied Germany with
military information which the Government of that country
140 THE NEUTRALITY OF BELGIUM
would not have scrupled to use, for reasons of State, when
the time came.
On August 2, 1914, before the fateful invasion of Belgian
territory took place, the German minister at Brussels
handed to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs proposals for the
entrance of Imperial troops into the country. The German
Government offered to ' bind themselves, at the conclusion
of peace, to guarantee the possessions and independence
of the Belgian Kingdom in full '.1 After the taking of
Liege, the German Government again made tempting pro-
posals,2 which would have saved Belgium from further
horrors of a hostile occupation, and from the long drawn-
out agony that was to follow. The reply of the Belgian
Government was simple and direct (August 12, 1914) :
The proposal made to us by the German Government
repeats the proposal formulated in their ultimatum of
August 2. Faithful to her international obligations,
Belgium can only reiterate her reply to that ultimatum,
the more so as since August 3 her neutrality has been
violated, a distressing war has been waged on her
territory, and the guarantors of her neutrality have
responded loyally and without delay to her appeal.3
The honesty and fortitude of the Belgian Government
and people show clear at the bar of history, and are an"
inspiring example for all time. No words can convey this
more truly than those in which the editor of the Collected
Diplomatic Documents, issued by the British Foreign Office,
concludes his preface :
This, however, may be said. Charges against Great
Britain are fair methods of warfare. They may call for
denial, but not for protest. But charges against Belgium,
made at such a moment and in such circumstances, can
be justified by no standards of policy or morality. They
fail before every test known to historical criticism, and
1 Collected Diplomatic Documents, p. 310.
8 Text and trans, in Collected Diplomatic Documents, pp. 335-6.
» Ibid., p. 340.
TREATY OF 1839 141
the circumstances in which they are made are them-
selves a refutation. For the sufferings of Belgium to-
day are largely due to her steady and honourable deter-
mination to appeal for no assistance which by any
stretch of malicious construction could be interpreted
as an infringement of the law of her existence.
TREATY BETWEEN GREAT BRITAIN, AUSTRIA, FRANCE,
PRUSSIA, AND RUSSIA, ON THE ONE PART, AND THE
NETHERLANDS, ON THE OTHER. SIGNED AT LONDON,
IQTH APRIL, I839.1
ARTICLE I. His Majesty the King of the Netherlands,
Grand Duke of Luxemburg, engages to cause to be immedi-
ately converted into a Treaty with His Majesty the King
of the Belgians, the Articles annexed to the present Act,
and agreed upon by common consent, under the auspices
of the Courts of Great Britain, Austria, France, Prussia,
and Russia.
ARTICLE II. Her Majesty the Queen of the United King-
dom of Great Britain and Ireland, His Majesty the Emperor
of Austria, King of Hungary and Bohemia, His Majesty
the King of the French, His Majesty the King of Prussia,
and His Majesty the Emperor of All the Russias, declare
that the Articles mentioned in the preceding Article, are
considered as having the same force and validity as if they
were textually inserted in the present Act, and that they
are thus placed under the guarantee of their said Majesties.
ARTICLE III. The Union which has existed between
Holland and Belgium, in virtue of the Treaty of Vienna
of the 3ist of May, 1815, is acknowledged by His Majesty
the King of the Netherlands, Grand Duke of Luxemburg,
to be dissolved.
ARTICLE IV. The present Treaty shall be ratified, and
the Ratifications shall be exchanged at London at the
expiration of 6 weeks, or sooner, if possible. The exchange
of these Ratifications shall take place at the same time
as that of the Ratifications of the Treaty between Holland
and Belgium.
1 State Papers, vol. xxvii, p. 990. Hertslet, vol. ii. No. 183.
A treaty was signed on the same day between the Powers and
Belgium, followed by the same annex. Article II declared that the
Treaty of the isth Nov., 1831, should not be obligatory on the High
Contracting Parties.
142 THE NEUTRALITY OF BELGIUM
In witness whereof, the respective Plenipotentiaries have
signed the present Treaty, and have affixed thereto the
Seal of their Arms.
Done at London, the igth day of April, in the year of
Our Lord, 1839.
(L.S.) PALMERSTON. (L.S.) DEDEL.
(L.S.) SENFF.
(L.S.) H. SEBASTIANI.
(L.S.) BULOW.
(L.S.) POZZO DI BORGO.
ANNEX TO THE TREATY SIGNED AT LONDON, ON THE
IQTH OF APRIL, 1839, BETWEEN GREAT BRITAIN,
AUSTRIA, FRANCE, PRUSSIA, AND RUSSIA, ON THE
ONE PART, AND THE NETHERLANDS, ON THE OTHER
PART.
ARTICLE I. The Belgian Territory shall be composed of
the Provinces of —
South Brabant ;
Liege ;
Namur ;
Hainault ;
West Flanders ;
East Flanders ;
Antwerp ; and
Limburg ;
such as they formed part of the United Kingdom of the
Netherlands constituted in 1815, with the exception of
those Districts of the Province of Limburg which are
designated in Article IV.
The Belgian Territory shall, moreover, comprise that
part of the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg which is specified
in Article II.
ARTICLE II. In the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg, the
limits of the Belgian Territory shall be such as will be
hereinafter described, viz. : —
Commencing from the Frontier of France between
Rodange, which shall remain to the Grand Duchy of
Luxemburg, and Athus, which shall belong to Belgium,
there shall be drawn, according to the annexed Map,
a line which, leaving to Belgium the road from Arlon to
Longwy, the Town of Arlon with its district, and the road
from Arlon to Bastogne, shall pass between Messancy, which
ANNEX TO TREATY OF 1839 T43
shall be on the Belgian Territory, and Clemancy, which
shall remain to the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg, terminat-
ing at Steinfort, which place shall also remain to the Grand
Duchy. From Steinfort this line shall be continued in the
direction of Eischen, Hecbus, Guirsch, Ober-Pallen, Grende,
Nothomb, Parette, and Perle, as far as Martelange : Hec-
bus, Guirsch, Grende, Nothomb, and Parette, shall
(devant appartenir) belong to Belgium, and Eischen, Ober-
Pallen, Perle, and Martelange, to the Grand Duchy. From
Martelange the said line shall follow the course of the Sure,
the waterway (Thalweg) of which River shall serve as the
limit between the two States, as far as opposite to Tintange,
from whence it shall be continued, as directly as possible,
towards the present Frontier of the Arrondissement of
Diekirch, and shall pass between Surret, Harlange, and
Tarchamps, which places shall be left to the Grand Duchy
of Luxemburg, and Honville, Livarchamps, and Loutre-
mange, which places shall form part of the Belgian Territory.
Then having, in the vicinity of Doncols and Soulez, which
shall remain to the Grand Duchy, reached the present
Boundary of the Arrondissement of Diekirch, the line in
question shall follow the said Boundary to the Fron-
tier of the Prussian Territory. All the Territories, Towns,
Fortresses, and places situated to the west of this line,
shall belong to Belgium ; and all the Territories, Towns,
Fortresses, and places situated to the east of the said line,
shall continue to belong to the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg.
It is understood, that in marking out this line, and in
conforming as closely as possible to the description of it
given above, as well as to the delineation of it on the Map,
which, for the sake of greater clearness, is annexed to the
present Article, the Commissioners of Demarcation, men-
tioned in Article V, shall pay due attention to the localities,
as well as to the mutual necessity for accommodation
which may result therefrom.
ARTICLE III. In return for the cessions made in the
preceding Article, there shall be assigned to His Majesty
the King of the Netherlands, Grand Duke of Luxemburg,
a Territorial Indemnity in the Province of Limburg.
ARTICLE IV. In execution of that part of Article I
which relates to the Province of Limburg, and in conse-
quence of the cessions which His Majesty the King of the
Netherlands, Grand Duke of Luxemburg, makes in Article II,
144 THE NEUTRALITY OF BELGIUM
His said Majesty shall possess, either to be held by him in
his character of Grand Duke of Luxemburg, or for the
purpose of being united to Holland, those Territories, the
limits of which are hereinafter described.
ist. On the right bank of the Meuse : to the old Dutch
enclaves upon the said bank in the Province of Limburg,
shall be united those districts of the said Province upon
the same bank, which did not belong to the States General
in 1790 ; in such wise that the whole of that part of the
present Province of Limburg, situated upon the right bank
of the Meuse, and comprised between that River on the
west, the Frontier of the Prussian Territory on the east,
the present Frontier of the province of Liege on the south,
and Dutch Guelderland on the north, shall henceforth
belong to His Majesty the King of the Netherlands, either
to be held by him in his character of Grand Duke of Luxem-
burg, or in order to be united to Holland.
2nd. On the left bank of the Meuse : commencing from
the southernmost point of the Dutch Province of North
Brabant, there shall be drawn, according to the annexed
Map, a line which shall terminate on the Meuse above
Wessem, between that place and Stevenswaardt, at the
point where the Frontiers of the present Arrondissements
of Ruremonde and Maestricht meet, on the left bank of
the Meuse ; in such manner that Bergerot, Stamproy,
Neer-Itteren, Ittervoordt, and Thorn, with their districts,
as well as all the other places situated to the north of this
line, shall form part of the Dutch Territory.
The old Dutch enclaves in the province of Limburg, upon
the left bank of the Meuse, shall belong to Belgium, with
the exception of the town of Maestricht, which, together
with a radius of territory, extending 1,200 toises from the
outer glacis of the fortress, on the said bank of this River,
shall continue to be possessed, in full Sovereignty and
Property, by His Majesty the King of the Netherlands.
ARTICLE V. His Majesty the King of the Netherlands,
Grand Duke of Luxemburg, shall come to an Agreement
with the Germanic Confederation, and with the Agnates of
the House of Nassau, as to the application of the stipula-
tions contained in Articles III and IV, as well as upon all
the arrangements which the said Articles may render
necessary, either with the above-mentioned Agnates of
the House of Nassau, or with the Germanic Confederation.
ANNEX TO TREATY. OF 1839 X45
ARTICLE VI. In consideration of the territorial arrange-
ments above stated, each of the two Parties renounces
reciprocally and for ever, all pretension to the Territories,
Towns, Fortresses, and Places situated within the limits
of the possessions of the other Party, such as those limits
are described in Articles I, II, and IV.
The said limits shall be marked out in conformity with
those Articles, by Belgian and Dutch Commissioners of
Demarcation, who shall meet as soon as possible in the
town of Maestricht.
ARTICLE VII. Belgium, within the limits specified in
Articles I, II, and IV, shall form an Independent and
perpetually Neutral State. It shall be bound to observe
such Neutrality towards all other States.
ARTICLE VIII. The drainage of the waters of the Two
Flanders shall be regulated between Holland and Belgium,
according to the stipulations on this subject contained in
Article VI of the Definitive Treaty concluded between
His Majesty the Emperor of Germany and the States-
General, on the 8th of November, 1785, and in conformity
with the said Article, Commissioners, to be named on either
side, shall make arrangements for the application of the
provisions contained in it.
ARTICLE IX. § i. The provisions of Articles CVIII to
CXVII, inclusive, of the General Act of the Congress of
Vienna, relative to the Free Navigation of navigable
Rivers, shall be applied to those navigable Rivers which
separate the Belgian and the Dutch territories, or which
traverse them both.
§ 2. So far as regards specially the Navigation of the
Scheldt, and of its mouths, it is agreed, that the Pilotage
and the Buoying of its channel, as well as the conservation
of the channels of the Scheldt below Antwerp, shall be
subject to a joint superintendence ; and that this joint
superintendence shall be exercised by Commissioners to be
appointed for this purpose by the two Parties. Moderate
Pilotage Dues shall be fixed by mutual agreement, and
those dues shall be the same for the vessels of all nations.
In the meantime, and until these dues shall be fixed, no
higher Pilotage Dues shall be levied than those which have
been established by the Tariff of 1829, for the mouths of
the Meuse from the High Sea to Helvoet, and from Helvoet
to Rotterdam, in proportion to the distances. It shall be
1933
146 THE NEUTRALITY OF BELGIUM
at the choice of every vessel proceeding from the High Sea
to Belgium, or from Belgium to the High Sea, to take what
pilot she pleases ; and upon the same principle it shall be
free for the two countries to establish along the whole
course of the Scheldt and at its mouths, such Pilotage
establishments as shall be deemed necessary for furnishing
Pilots. Everything relating to these establishments shall
be determined by the regulation to be concluded in con-
formity with § 6 hereinafter following. These establish-
ments shall be placed under the joint superintendence
mentioned in the beginning of the present paragraph.
The two Governments engage to preserve the navigable
channels of the Scheldt, and of its mouths, and to place
and maintain therein the necessary beacons and buoys,
each for its own part of the River.
§ 3. There shall be levied by the Government of the
Netherlands, upon the navigation of the Scheldt and of its
mouths, a single duty of ifl. 5oc. per ton, that is to say,
ifl. I2c. on vessels which, coming from the High Sea,
shall ascend the Western Scheldt in order to proceed to
Belgium by the Scheldt or by the Canal of Terneuze ; and
of 380. per ton on vessels which, coming from Belgium
by the Scheldt or by the Canal of Terneuze, shall descend
the Western Scheldt in order to proceed to the High Sea.
And in order that the said vessels may not be subject to
any visit, nor to any delay or hindrance whatever within
the Dutch waters, either in ascending the Scheldt from the
High Sea, or in descending the Scheldt in order to reach
the High Sea, it is agreed that the collection of the duty
above mentioned shall take place by Dutch agents at
Antwerp and at Terneuze. In the same manner, vessels
arriving from the High Sea in order to proceed to Antwerp
by the Western Scheldt, and coming from places suspected
in regard to health, shall be at liberty to continue their
course without hindrance or delay, accompanied by one
health guard, and thus to proceed to the place of their
destination. Vessels proceeding from Antwerp to Terneuze,
and vice versa, or carrying on in the River itself Coasting
Trade or Fishery (in such manner as the exercise of the
latter shall be regulated in pursuance of § 6 hereinafter)
shall not be subjected to any duty.
§ 4. The branch of the Scheldt called the Eastern Scheldt
not being in its present state available for the navigation
ANNEX TO TREATY OF 1839 147
from the High Sea to Antwerp and Terneuze, and vice
versa, but being used for the navigation between Antwerp
and the Rhine, this eastern branch shall not be burthened,
in any part of its course, with higher duties or tolls than
those which are levied, according to the Tariffs of Mayence
of the 3ist March, 1831, upon the navigation from Gorcum
to the High Sea, in proportion to the distances.
§ 5. It is also agreed that the navigation of the inter-
mediate channels between the Scheldt and the Rhine, in
order to proceed from Antwerp to the Rhine, and vice
versa, shall continue reciprocally free, and that it shall be
subject only to moderate tolls, which shall be the same
for the commerce of the two countries.
§ 6. Commissioners on both sides shall meet at Antwerp
in the space of one month, as well to determine the definitive
and permanent amount of these tolls, as to agree upon
a general regulation for the execution of the provisions of
the present Article, and to include therein a provision for
the exercise of the right of Fishing and of trading in fish,
throughout the whole extent of the Scheldt, on a footing
of perfect reciprocity and equality in favour of the subjects
of the two countries.
§ 7. In the meantime, and until the said regulations shall
be prepared, the navigation of the Meuse and of its branches
shall remain free to the commerce of the two countries,
which shall adopt provisionally, in this respect, the Tariffs
of the Convention signed at Mayence on the 3ist March,
1831, for the Free Navigation of the Rhine, as well as the
other provisions of that Convention, so far as they may be
applicable to the said River.
§ 8. If natural events or works of art should hereafter
render impracticable the lines of navigation mentioned in
the present Article, the Government of the Netherlands
shall assign to Belgian navigation other lines equally safe,
and equally good and commodious, instead of the said
lines of navigation become impracticable.
ARTICLE X. The use of the Canals which traverse both
countries shall continue to be free and common to the
inhabitants of both. It is understood that they shall
enjoy the use of the same reciprocally, and on equal con-
ditions ; and that on either side moderate duties only
shall be levied upon the navigation of the said Canals.
ARTICLE XL The commercial communications through
L 2
148 THE NEUTRALITY OF BELGIUM
the town of Maestricht, and through Sittardt, shall remain
entirely free, and shall not be impeded under any pretext
whatsoever.
The use of the roads which, passing through these towns,
lead to the Frontiers of Germany, shall be subject only to
the payment of moderate Turnpike Tolls, for the repair of
the said roads, so that the transit commerce may not
experience any obstacle thereby, and that by means of
the Tolls above mentioned, these roads may be kept in
good repair, and fit to afford facilities to that commerce.
ARTICLE XII. In the event of a new Road having been
constructed, or a new Canal cut, in Belgium, terminating
at the Meuse, opposite the Dutch canton of Sittardt, in
that case Belgium shall be entitled to demand of Holland,
who, on the other hand, shall not in such case refuse her
consent, that the said Road, or the said Canal, shall be
continued, according to the same plan, and entirely at the
cost and charge of Belgium, through the canton of Sittardt,
to the frontiers of Germany. This Road or Canal, which
shall be used only as a commercial communication, shall
be constructed, at the option of Holland, either by engineers
and workmen whom Belgium shall obtain permission to
employ for that purpose in the canton of Sittardt, or by
engineers and workmen to be furnished by Holland, and
who shall execute the works agreed upon at the expense
of Belgium ; the whole without any charge whatsoever to
Holland, and without prejudice to her exclusive rights of
Sovereignty over the Territory which may be traversed by
the Road or Canal in question.
The two Parties shall fix, by mutual agreement, the
amount and the mode of collection of the Duties and Tolls
which should be levied upon the said Road or Canal.
ARTICLE XIII. § I. From and after the ist of January,
1839, Belgium, with reference to the division of the Public
Debt of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, shall remain
charged with the sum of 5,000,000 of Netherland florins of
annual interest, the capital of which shall be transferred
from the debit of the Great Book of Amsterdam, or from
the debit of the General Treasury of the Kingdom of the
Netherlands, to the debit of the Great Book of Belgium.
§ 2. The capitals transferred, and the annuities inscribed
upon the debit of the Great Book of Belgium, in con-
sequence of the preceding paragraph, to the amount of the
ANNEX TO TREATY OF 1839 149
total sum of 5,000,000 Netherland florins of annual interest,
shall be considered as forming part of the Belgian National
Debt ; and Belgium engages not to admit, either at present
or in future, any distinction between this portion of her
Public Debt arising. from her union with Holland, and any
other Belgian National Debt already created, or which
may be created hereafter.
§ 3. The payment of the above-mentioned sum of
5,000,000 Netherland florins of annual interest, shall take
place regularly every 6 months, either at Brussels or at
Antwerp, in ready money, without deduction of any kind
whatsoever, either at present or in future.
§ 4. In consideration of the creation of the said sum of
5,000,000 florins of annual interest, Belgium shall be
released from all obligation towards Holland, on account
of the division of the Public Debt of the Kingdom of the
Netherlands.
§ 5. Commissioners to be named on both sides shall meet
within the space of 15 days in the town of Utrecht, in order
to proceed to the transfer of the capitals and annual interest
which, upon the division of the Public Debt of the Kingdom
of the Netherlands, are to pass to the charge of Belgium,
up to the amount of 5,000,000 florins of annual interest.
They shall also proceed to deliver up the Archives, Maps,
Plans, and other documents whatsoever which belong to
Belgium, or which relate to her administration.
ARTICLE XIV. The Port of Antwerp, in conformity with
the stipulations of Article XV of the Treaty of Paris, of
the 3oth of May, 1814, shall continue to be solely a Port
of Commerce.
ARTICLE XV. Works of Public or Private utility, such
as canals, roads, or others of a similar nature, constructed
wholly or in part at the expense of the Kingdom of the
Netherlands, shall belong, together with the advantages
and charges thereunto attached, to the Country in which
they are situated.
It is understood that the capitals borrowed for the
construction of these works, and specifically charged
thereupon, shall be comprised in the aforesaid charges, in
so far as they may not yet have been repaid, and without
giving rise to any claim on account of repayments already
made.
ARTICLE XVI. The Sequestrations which may have been
150 THE NEUTRALITY OF BELGIUM
imposed in Belgium, during the troubles, for political
causes, on any Property or Hereditary Estates whatsoever,
shall be taken off without delay, and the enjoyment of the
Property and Estates above mentioned shall.be immediately
restored to the lawful owners thereof.
ARTICLE XVII. In the two countries of which the
separation takes place in consequence of the present
Articles, inhabitants and proprietors, if they wish to
transfer their residence from one country to the other,
shall, during two years, be at liberty to dispose of their
property, movable or immovable, of whatever nature the
same may be, to sell it, and to carry away the produce
of the sale, either in money or in any other shape, without
hindrance, and without the payment of any duties other
than those which are now in force in the two countries
upon changes and transfers.
It is understood that the collection of the Droit d'Aubaine
et de Detraction upon the persons and property of Dutch in
Belgium, and of Belgians in Holland, is abandoned, both
now and for the future.
ARTICLE XVIII. The character of a subject of the two
Governments, with regard to Property, shall be acknow-
ledged and maintained.
ARTICLE XIX. The stipulations of Articles from XI to
XXI, inclusive, of the Treaty concluded between Austria
and Russia, on the 3rd of May, 1815, which forms an
integral part of the General Act of the Congress of Vienna,
stipulations relative- to Persons who possess Property in
both Countries, to the election of residence which they are
required to make, to the rights which they shall exercise
as subjects of either State, and to the relations of neigh-
bourhood in Properties cut by the Frontiers, shall be
applied to such Proprietors, as well as to such Properties,
in Holland, in the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg, or in
Belgium, as shall be found to come within the cases pro-
vided for by the aforesaid stipulations of the Acts of the
Congress of Vienna. It is understood that mineral pro-
ductions are comprised among the productions of the soil
mentioned in Article XX of the Treaty of the 3rd of May,
1815, above referred to. The Droits d'Aubaine et de Detrac-
tion being henceforth abolished, as between Holland, the
Grand Duchy of Luxemburg, and Belgium, it is understood
that such of the above-mentioned stipulations as may
ANNEX TO TREATY OF 1839 151
relate to those duties, shall be considered null and void
in the 3 Countries.
ARTICLE XX. No person in the territories which change
domination shall be molested or disturbed in any manner
whatever, on account of any part which he may have
taken, directly or indirectly, in Political Events.
ARTICLE XXI. The Pensions and Allowances of expec-
tants, of persons unemployed or retired, shall in future be
paid, on either side, to all those individuals entitled thereto,
both civil and military, conformably to the laws in force
previous to the ist November, 1830.
It is agreed that the above-mentioned Pensions and
Allowances to persons born in the Territories which now
constitute Belgium, shall remain at the charge of the
Belgian Treasury ; and the Pensions and Allowances of
persons born in the Territories which now constitute the
Kingdom of the Netherlands, shall be at the charge of the
Netherland Treasury.
ARTICLE XXII. All Claims of Belgian subjects upon any
Private Establishments, such as the Widows' Fund, and
the fund known under the denomination of the Fonds des
Leges, and of the chest of civil and military retired allow-
ances, shall be examined by the Mixed Commission men-
tioned in Article XIII, and shall be determined according
to the tenour of the regulations by which these funds or
chests are governed.
The Securities furnished, as well as the payments made,
by Belgian accountants, the judicial deposits and con-
signments, shall equally be restored to the parties entitled
thereto, on the presentation of their proofs.
If, under the head of what are called the French Liquida-
tions, any Belgian subjects should still be able to bring
forward Claims to be inscribed, such Claims shall also be
examined and settled by the said Commission.
ARTICLE XXIII. All Judgments given in Civil and
Commercial matters, all acts of the civil power, and all
acts executed before a notary or other public officer under
the Belgian administration, in those parts of Limburg and
of the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg, of which His Majesty
the King of the Netherlands, Grand Duke of Luxemburg,
is to be replaced in possession, shall be maintained in full
force and validity.
ARTICLE XXIV. Immediately after the exchange of
152 THE NEUTRALITY OF BELGIUM
the Ratifications of the Treaty to be concluded between
the two Parties, the necessary orders shall be transmitted
to the Commanders of the respective Troops, for the
evacuation of the Territories, Towns, Fortresses, and
Places which change domination. The Civil Authorities
thereof shall also, at the same time, receive the necessary
orders for delivering over the said Territories, Towns,
Fortresses, and Places, to the Commissioners who shall be
appointed by both Parties for this purpose.
This evacuation and delivery shall be effected so as to
be completed in the space of 15 days, or sooner if possible.
REPORT OF CONVERSATIONS BETWEEN THE BELGIAN AND
BRITISH MILITARY AUTHORITIES, igoG.1
Letter [from the Chief of the Belgian General Staff] to the
[Belgian] Minister of War respecting the confidential
Interviews.
(Confidential.)
Brussels, April 10, 1906.
Sir,
I have the honour to furnish herewith a summary of
the conversations which I have had with Lieutenant-
Colonel Barnardiston, which I have already reported to
you verbally.
His first visit was in the middle of January. Lieutenant-
Colonel Barnardiston told me of the preoccupation of
the British General Staff concerning the general political
situation and the existing possibilities of war. Should
Belgium be attacked, it was proposed to send about 100,000
men.
The lieutenant-colonel having asked me how we should
interpret such a step, I answered that, from the military
point of view, it could only be advantageous ; but that this
question of intervention had also a political side, and that
I must accordingly consult the Minister of War.
Lieutenant-Colonel Barnardiston replied that his Minister
at Brussels would speak about it to our Minister for Foreign
Affairs.
1 In French. (Norddeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung, October 13,
1914 ; Aktenstucke zum Kriegsausbruch. Herausgegeben vom Aus-
wartigen Amte, pp. 58-72 ; Collected Diplomatic Documents, pp.
354 «.)
REPORT OF CONVERSATIONS 153
He continued as follows : The disembarkation of the
British troops would take place on the French coast, in
the neighbourhood of Dunkirk and Calais, in such a manner
that the operation might be carried out in the quickest
possible way.1 Landing at Antwerp would take much
longer, as larger transports would be required, and, more-
over, the risk would be greater.
This being so, several other points remained to be decided,
viz., transport by rail, the question of requisitions to which
the British Army might have recourse, the question of
the chief command of the allied forces.
He enquired whether our arrangements were adequate
to secure the defence of the country during the crossing
and transport of the British troops — a period which he
estimated at about ten days.
I answered that the fortresses of Namur and Liege were
safe against a surprise attack, and that in four days our
field army of 100,000 men would be ready to take the field.
After having expressed his entire satisfaction at what I
had said, my visitor emphasized the following points :
(i) Our conversation was absolutely confidential ; (2) it
was in no way binding on his Government ; (3) his Minister,
the British General Staff, he, and myself were the only
persons then aware of the matter ; (4) he did not know
whether his Sovereign had been consulted.
At a subsequent meeting Lieutenant-Colonel Barnardiston
assured me that he had never received any confidential
information from other military attaches about our army.
He then gave me a detailed statement of the strength of
the British forces : we might rely on it that, in twelve or
thirteen days, two army corps, four cavalry brigades, and
two brigades of mounted infantry would be landed.
He asked me to study the question of the transport of
these forces to that part of the country where they would
be most useful, and with this object in view he promised
me a detailed statement of the composition of the landing
force.
He reverted to the question of the effective strength of
1 The following marginal note occurs in the facsimile : —
(Translation.)
'The entry of the English into Belgium would only take place
after the violation of our neutrality by Germany.'
154
our field army, and considered it important that no detach-
ments from that army should be sent to Namur and Liege,
as those fortresses were provided with adequate garrisons.
He drew my attention to the necessity of letting the
British Army take full advantage of the facilities afforded
under our regulations respecting military requirements.
Finally, he laid stress on the question of the chief command.
I replied that I could say nothing on the latter point,
and I promised that I would study the other questions
with care.
Later, the British military attache confirmed his previous
estimate : twelve days at least were indispensable to carry
out the landing on the coast of France. It would take
much longer (from one to two and a half months) to land
100,000 men at Antwerp.
On my objecting that it would be useless to wait till the
disembarkation was finished, before beginning the transport
by rail, and that it would be better to send on the troops
by degrees as they arrived on the coast, Lieutenant-Colonel
Barnardiston promised me precise details of the daily
disembarkation table.
With regard to the question of military requirements,
I informed my visitor that that question would easily be
arranged.
As the plans of the British General Staff advanced, the
details of the problem were worked out with greater
precision. The colonel assured me that half the British
Army could be landed in eight days, and the remainder
at the end of the twelfth or thirteenth day, except the
mounted infantry, on which we could not count till later.
Nevertheless/ 1 felt bound once more to urge the necessity
of knowing the numbers to be landed daily, so as to work
out the railway arrangements for each day.
The British attache then spoke to me of various other
questions, viz. : (i) The necessity of maintaining secrecy
about the operations, and of ensuring that the Press should
observe this carefully ; (2) the advantages there would be
in attaching a Belgian officer to each British staff, an
interpreter to each commanding officer, and gendarmes
to each unit to help the British military police.
At another interview Lieutenant-Colonel Barnardiston
and I examined the question of combined operations in the
event of a German attack directed against Antwerp, and on
REPORT OF CONVERSATIONS 155
the hypothesis of our country being crossed in order to
reach the French Ardennes.
Later on, the colonel signified his concurrence in the
scheme I had laid before him, and assured me of the assent
of General Grierson, Chief of the British General Staff.
Other questions of secondary importance were likewise
disposed of, particularly those respecting intermediary
officers, interpreters, gendarmes, maps, illustrations of
uniforms, English translations of extracts from certain
Belgian regulations, the regulation of customs dues charge-
able on the British supplies, hospital accommodation
for the wounded of the allied army, &c. Nothing was
settled as to the possible control of the Press by the
Government or the military authorities.
In the course of the last meetings which I had with the
British attache he communicated to me the daily disem-
barkation table of the troops to be landed at Boulogne,
Calais and Cherbourg. The distance of the latter place,
included owing to certain technical considerations, would
cause a certain delay. The first corps would be landed on
the tenth day, the second corps on the fifteenth day. Our
railways would carry out the transport operations in such
a way that the arrival of the first corps, either towards
Brussels-Louvain or towards Namur-Dinant, would be
completed on the eleventh day and that of the second corps
on the sixteenth day.
I finally urged once again, as forcibly as was within
my power, the necessity of accelerating the transport by
sea in order that the British troops might be with us
between the eleventh and the twelfth day ; the very best
and most favourable results would accrue from the concerted
and simultaneous action by the allied forces. On the other
hand, a serious check would ensue if such co-operation
could not be achieved. Colonel Barnardiston assured me
that everything would be done with that end in view.
In the course of our conversations I took the opportunity
of convincing the military attache of our resolve to impede
the enemies' movements as far as lay within our power,
and not to take refuge in Antwerp from the outset. Lieu-
tenant-Colonel Barnardiston, on his side, informed me that
he had at present little confidence in the support or inter-
vention of Holland. He likewise confided to me that his
Government intended to move the British base of supplies
156 THE NEUTRALITY OF BELGIUM
from the French coast to Antwerp as soon as the North
Sea had been cleared of all German warships.
At all our interviews the colonel regularly communicated
to me any confidential information he possessed respecting
the military condition and general situation of our eastern
neighbour, &c. At the same time he laid stress on the
imperative need for Belgium to keep herself well informed
of what was going on in the neighbouring Rhine country.
I had to admit to him that in our country the intelligence
service beyond the frontier was not, in times of peace,
directly under our General Staff. We had no military
attaches at our legations. I took care, however, not to
admit to him that I was unaware whether the secret service,
prescribed in our regulations, was organized or not. But
it is my duty here to call attention to this state of affairs,
which places us in a position of glaring inferiority to that
of our neighbours, our possible enemies.
Major-General,
Chief of General Staff.
(Initialled.)
Note. — When I met General Grierson at Compiegne at
the manoeuvres of 1906 he assured me that the reorganiza-
tion of the British army would result not only in ensuring
the landing of 150,000 men, but in enabling them to take
the field in a shorter period than had been previously
estimated.
End of September 1906.
(Initialled.)
(Translation.)
(Confidential.)
The British military attache asked to see General
Jungbluth. These gentlemen met on the 23rd April.
Lieutenant-Colonel Bridges told the general that Great
Britain had, available for dispatch to the Continent, an
army composed of six divisions of infantry and eight brigades
of cavalry, in all 160,000 men. She had also all that she
needed for home defence. Everything was ready.
The British Government, at the time of the recent
events, would have immediately landed troops on our
territory, even if we had not asked for help.
REPORT OF CONVERSATIONS 157
The general protested that our consent would be necessary
for this.
The military attach6 answered that he knew that, but
that as we were not in a position to prevent the Germans
passing through our territory, Great Britain would have
landed her troops in any event.
As to the place of landing, the military attache was not
explicit. He said the coast was rather long ; but the general
knows that Mr. Bridges made daily visits to Zeebrugge
from Ostend during the Easter holidays.
The general added that, after all, we were, besides,
perfectly able to prevent the Germans from going through.
April 24, 1912.
CHAPTER V
TURKEY AND THE POWERS OF EUROPE
Turkey and the Public Law of Europe — The Capitulations — The
Treaty of Kutschuk-Kainardji — The Holy Places — Russia
and the Orthodox Church — Invasion of the Principalities —
Attitude of Great Britain and France — The tradition of friend-
ship — Nicholas I : Lord Stratford de Redcliffe — The Vienna
Note — The War of 1853-6 — Admission of Turkey to the Public
Law of Europe — Russian aspirations towards Constantinople —
Policy of Pitt — Treaty of Tilsit — Treaty of Bucharest (1812) —
Greek War of Independence — Treaty of Adrianople — Mehemet
Ali — Treaty of Unkiar Skelessi — Lord Palmerston and the
Quadruple Alliance — Convention of the Straits — Treaty of
Paris — Collective guarantee to Turkey — Reforms promised —
Closing of Straits — Neutralization of Black Sea — Navigation of
the Danube — European Commission — Rou mania — The Bess-
arabian Frontier — Serbia — The Aland Islands — Declaration
of Paris respecting Maritime Law.
Texts : The Treaty of Paris (1856) — The Straits Convention
(1856) — The Declaration of Paris (1856).
UP till the year 1856 the Public Law of Europe had to
a large extent consisted of the Acts of the Congress of
Vienna (1814-15) and the treaties which were consequential
to it. But in the Vienna Settlement Turkey had no part.
It stood outside the Public Law of Europe, nor was it
recognized in any Concert of European States, although it
had treaties with individual Governments. The Treaty
of Paris, March 30, 1856, admitted Turkey to the Public
Law of Europe, recognized it as a European State, and
guaranteed its position. This was the result of the war
between Russia on the one part, and Turkey, Great Britain,
France, and Sardinia, on the other, popularly known in this
country as the Crimean War.
THE CAPITULATIONS 159
Most of the treaties concluded by Turkey with individual
European States are called Capitulations, and referred
chiefly to commercial privileges, and to extra-territorial
rights granted to foreigners resident in Turkey. These
Capitulations (which were denounced by the Turkish
Government on September n, 1914) contained causes of
grave trouble, as they created an imperium or rather a
series of imperia in imperio, and gave foreign Govern-
ments grounds for interfering in the internal affairs of the
country.
The Capitulations of 1740 with France and the Treaty
of Kutschuk-Kainardji in 1775 with Russia are good
instances of the way in which foreign Governments acquired,
or seemed to have acquired, the right of interfering in the
internal affairs of Turkey. The Capitulations of 1740 with
France confirmed all the existing rights and privileges of
the Latin Church in Palestine. France therefore appeared
to be from that time the protector of the Latin Church in
the Turkish dominions. In the same way, the Russian
Government claimed to be the lawful protector of the
Greek Church in Turkey. Article VII of the Treaty of
Kutschuk-Kainardji (January 10, 1775) between Turkey
and Russia is as follows : ' The Sublime Porte promises to
protect firmly the Christian religion and its churches ;
and also it permits the Ministers of the Imperial Court of
Russia to make on all occasions representations in favour
both of the new church at Constantinople, of which mention
is made in Article XIV, and of those who carry on its
service, promising to take them into consideration as made
by a person of confidence of a neighbouring and sincerely
friendly power.' 1 Thus France and Russia both claimed
the right of protecting their co-religionists in Turkey.
1 Treaty of Kutschuk-Kainardji, January 10, 1775, in G. F. von
Martens, Recueil de Traitts (Gottingen, 1817), tome ii, pp. 287-322.
Article XIV refers to the building in the quarter of Galata of ' a
public church of the Greek rite, which will always be under the
protection of the ministers of that Empire ' (i.e. of Russia).
160 TURKEY AND THE POWERS, 1856
Disputes over these points led to the outbreak of the
Crimean War.
The question of the Latin Church came forward in 1851,
and caused acute feeling. The church at Bethlehem, built
over the place where Christ was born, was in charge of monks
of the Orthodox or Greek Church. The Latin monks of
Bethlehem did not claim the church itself, but they claimed
the right of having the key of the chief door, and also of
placing a silver star with the arms of France within the
sanctuary of the Nativity. By the end of the year 1852,
Napoleon III, who had in the previous year succeeded in
making himself Emperor of the French, gained from the
Turkish Government recognition of the claims of the Latin
monks. The dispute about the Holy Places was thus
settled with a victory for France.
The dispute about the Holy Places had no direct bearing
on the Crimean War, because it was settled before the war
was thought of. But the triumph of France in the dispute
hurt the pride of the Tsar Nicholas I, and injured the
religious feelings of the Russians, for whom pilgrimages to
Palestine were a real thing. Nicholas therefore put forward
the claims of Russia to protect all the subjects of the Porte
who were members of the Orthodox, that is, the Greek
Church. The Turkish Government denied that any such
right was conferred by the Treaty of Kutschuk-Kainardji.
The claim of the Russian Government was indeed rather
a serious one. The Orthodox subjects of the Porte num-
bered millions, and formed really a separate nation inside
Turkey. To acknowledge the Russian Government as the
protector of that nation would be tantamount to giving
away a portion of Turkish sovereignty. The mission of
Prince Menshikoff to Constantinople in 1853 had no effect
upon the Turks, who were kept firm in their attitude by
the great English ambassador, Lord Stratford de Redcliffe.
A conflict of wills was thus set up between the Russian
and Turkish Governments. As Nicholas could not by
GREAT BRITAIN AND FRANCE 161
diplomatic means impose his will on the Porte, he resolved
to do so by war. On June 22, 1853, his army crossed the
Pruth and proceeded to occupy the dependent Danubian
principalities of Turkey, Moldavia and Wallachia.
The war had thus begun over a dispute between Russia
and Turkey concerning the question of a protectorate for
the Greek Church. But the Governments of Great Britain
and France felt that something more was involved, namely,
the existence of Turkey in Europe. Great Britain and
France therefore,, to prevent the destruction of European
Turkey, directed their efforts first to stop the war and to
settle the dispute by diplomacy ; failing in this, to save
Turkey by taking part in the war. Great Britain and
France by the Crimean War saved Turkey in Europe : it
is just possible, however, that if they had persisted a little
longer in their diplomatic efforts, as Lord Stratford wished
them to do, they might have saved it without taking part
in the war.
That Great Britain should take an active interest in the
question, diplomatically or otherwise, was unavoidable.
We had at that time a traditional policy, deliberately
founded upon reason and experience, of supporting Turkey,
and of opposing Russian designs upon Constantinople.
The forces of Islam are widespread, profound, and incalcul-
able. It was considered safer for us to keep those forces
in comparative quiet than to excite them indefinitely by
hostility to the Turks. But we could not remain friendly
with the Turks without supporting their position in Europe,
to which both they and all the Mohammedan world attached
the greatest value. The aims of the Russians were incom-
patible with the existence of Turkey in Europe. The
historic movements of that great people have been to-
wards the seas, the Baltic, the Black Sea, the Mediter-
ranean, the Pacific. Constantinople, the gate of the Black
Sea and the Mediterranean, the capital of the ancient
Byzantine Empire, the great city of the Orthodox
1903
M
i62 TURKEY AND THE POWERS, 1856
Church, was a natural and reasonable object of Russian
aspirations.
The Turks by themselves were not strong enough to
maintain their hold upon Constantinople. ' The Sick Man '
was Nicholas I's term for Turkey ; the Ottoman Empire
had in his time all the appearances of a State on the verge
of disruption, and Nicholas was anxious that a reasonable
scheme should be proposed by the Powers for meeting
this result. ' I repeat to you ', he said to our ambassador
Hamilton Seymour at Petrograd in February 1852, ' that
the sick man is dying, and we can never allow such an
event to take us by surprise. We must come to some
understanding.' x Great Britain refused to come to any
such understanding. Lord Stratford de Redcliffe firmly
believed that Turkey had within it the possibilities of
reform, of becoming a self-respecting and efficient State.
France, too, supported Turkey, for she had great interests
in the Mediterranean, and Napoleon III had a vigorous
foreign policy.
The Powers acting in concert tried to settle the dispute
between Russia and Turkey by diplomatic means. Together
the Governments of Great Britain, France, Austria, and
Prussia, in August 1853 presented to Turkey the ' Vienna
Note ', which they had drawn up. The Porte rejected the
Note as it seemed, according to its wording, to imply the
existence of a Russian protectorate over the Greek Church.
Accordingly it was sent back to be re-drafted. But a com-
bination of circumstances precipitated war, before a new
Note could be drawn up. While, at Constantinople, Lord
Stratford de Redcliffe was working for a peaceful issue,
there was a war-fever among the Turks themselves.
Napoleon III, acting on reports from the French Ambas-
sador, began to fear that delay might cause the dissolution
of the Turkish Empire. In England, Lord Aberdeen's
Government came quickly to the same view. On Sep-
1 Quoted by Kinglake, Invasion oj the Crimea, vol. i, p. 88.
TREATY OF PARIS, 1856 163
tember 23, 1853, the order was sent to the British Fleet
to pass the Dardanelles. The passage was made on
October 14, the Porte having ten days previously declared
a formal state of war against Russia.1
The long and costly war in the end accomplished its
objects for the Allies. The Russian invasion across the
Danube was foiled by the heroic defence of Silistria, and
Nicholas even had to evacuate the Principalities. The
evacuation of the Principalities practically involved, for
the time being at any rate, the abandonment of the Russian
claim to a protectorate over the Greek Church in Turkey.
Thus the dispute over which the war had begun was so far
settled. But the Allied Powers resolved to go further,
and, by destroying Russia's naval base on the Black Sea, to
prevent at any rate for a considerable period the advance
of Russian power to Constantinople. The siege and
capture of Sebastopol accomplished this object, and left,
for the time being, no further cause for war. When the
invasion of the Crimea was thus crowned with success,
a meeting of the Concert of Europe took place at Paris,
and the Treaty of 1856 was concluded.
The outstanding points in the Treaty of Paris, March 30,
1856, are that it admitted Turkey to a place in the Public
Law of Europe, and guaranteed its integrity. Turkey
was therefore no longer outside the pale ; the tradition
which had come down from the time of the Crusades, that
the Turks were the enemies of Europe and of civilization,
was abandoned. Turkey was henceforth to be a member
of the European States-System, and to be treated as
a civilized community.
The Treaty of Paris was thus a definite denial to the
aspirations of Russia. That mighty Empire, despite its
vast territory, its natural resources, its industrious people,
1 The Declaration of War by Turkey is a very interesting and
clear account of the causes of the War. It is given in full in Hertslet,
vol. ii, No. 234.
M 2
164 TURKEY AND THE POWERS, 1856
has always suffered from being land-locked. Always trying,
it has never completely succeeded in getting room and free-
play upon the oceans of the world. Every inch of its
seaboard has had to be wrested from an alien Power.
Every crisis in modern European history has shown Russia
faced with the prospect of blockade by its neighbours.
Against such a contingency, the possession of Constanti-
nople would have at least partially provided. The Turks,
however, have been in possession since 1453. By admitting
them to the privileges of the Public Law of Europe, the
Treaty of Paris recognized them as a civilized and respect-
able State, and if by her subsequent conduct in the
community of European States, Turkey should justify her
position there, neither Russia nor any other Power would
have a moral right to expropriate her.
This rise of Turkey to membership among the States of
Europe was due in great part to the friendship which
Great Britain had maintained with her since 1790. By
that year the Russian trend towards Constantinople was
becoming swift and unerring. The Empress Catherine' II
was carrying out a successful war of annexation. In vain
did Great Britain and Prussia, who with Holland had
formed a famous Triple Alliance in 1788, threaten war
and prepare their forces. The ultimatum which the allied
Powers sent to Petrograd in 1791 was never presented,
and next year Catherine concluded the Peace of Jassy, in
the modern Rouma,nia (January 9, 1792), and the port of
Oczakov passed under the dominion of Russia. Oczakov
itself was of little value as a port, but two years later
Odessa was founded near by, and rapidly became a great
city, equally important for war and for commerce. Pitt's
policy had failed for the moment, but it was not abandoned.
Great Britain continued steadily to support the Turks, and
their alliance helped to preserve the British Empire during
the Napoleonic Wars.
In 1807 (July 7) Napoleon and Alexander I made peace
TREATY OF BUCHAREST, 1812 165
at Tilsit in East Prussia, after the Russians had been
soundly beaten at the battle of Friedland. The two Powers
became Allies ; Secret Articles provided that Russia was
to aid Napoleon in his conflict with England, France was
to help Russia in her designs upon Turkey. A partition
of the Ottoman Empire in Europe was contemplated. The
English Foreign Minister Canning obtained almost immedi-
ately information about the understanding which Napoleon
and the Tsar had come to. From this time the policy of
the British Government with regard to Russia, in every-
thing which related to Turkey, became fixed.
The expansion of Russia towards Constantinople was
steadily pursued. In 1809-10 a fresh campaign was under-
taken, and went favourably for Russia. But the rupture
between Alexander and Napoleon made it necessary for
the Tsar to free his hands with regard to Turkey. So on
May 28, 1812, the Treaty of Bucharest * was signed.
Russia gained lands east of the Pruth, and Serbian auto-
nomy was recognized by Turkey.
On the whole, the cataclysms of the Napoleonic period
left the Turkish Empire comparatively unscathed. The
Greek War of Independence (1821-9) was *° leave a deeper
mark. The mediation offered by Great Britain, France,
and Russia was rejected by the Turks ; and after the
battle of Navarino, Russia declared war. The campaigns of
1828-9 closed with the Treaty of Adrianople (September 14,
1829). Russia had occupied the Danubian principalities
of Wallachia and Moldavia, but she now evacuated them,
stipulating, however, for their continued autonomy under
the Porte with renewed and increased privileges. The
Pruth was restored as the boundary in Europe between the
Russian and Ottoman Empires. Turkey agreed that there
should be freedom of trade and navigation in the Black
Sea, and declared the Bosphorus and Dardanelles open to
1 Confirmed and explained by the Treaty of Akerman, Sep-
tember 25, 1826 (Martens, vol. xvii, p. 1053).
166 TURKEY AND THE POWERS, 1856
alJ Russian merchant-vessels, and to the merchant-ships
of all other Powers with whom the Porte was at peace.
In 1829, at the Peace of Adrianople, Russia had behaved
with great moderation towards Turkey. Nicholas I was
at this period aiming not at annexation, but at influence.
Turkish power was declining : the Powers of Europe would
not tolerate her absorption by Russia, but if Russia peace-
fully became the friend and protector of Turkey, they
might not be able to gainsay such a position. In 1833
Russia achieved this position, and without violence became
for a short time supreme at Constantinople.
The Pasha of Egypt, Mehemet Ali, the founder of the
present dynasty there, was too great a subject for his
master the Sultan. In 1832 there was open war between
the two : the organized and disciplined army of Mehemet
Ali, under his son Ibrahim, drove the Sultan's army out
of Syria, invaded Asia Minor, and having destroyed the
Turkish Army at Konieh (December 21), opened the road
to the Bosphorus. At last the Turkish Empire seemed
definitely faced with destruction, not from without but
from within. At this point, Tsar Nicholas I offered his
alliance and saved the Porte from Mehemet Ali. A Russian
squadron was admitted to the Bosphorus, Russian soldiers
were sent to join with the Turkish forces. A defensive
alliance was concluded by the Treaty of Unkiar Skelessi,
July 8, I833,1 and Russia became the paramount power
at Constantinople.
Article I of this remarkable treaty enacted a defensive
alliance between Russia and Turkey. Article III enacted
that in order to maintain the independence of Turkey, the
Tsar would furnish, when called upon, the forces necessary
by land and sea to secure this object. A secret article in
conclusion was the most momentous of all : it provided
that, although the treaty was one for mutual defence, yet
in order to spare Turkey the expense of providing troops
1 Hcrtslct, vol. ii, No. 168.
LORD PALMERSTON 167
for Russia, the Tsar 'will not ask for that aid if circum-
stances should place the Sublime Porte under the obligation
of furnishing it '. Instead, ' the Sublime Ottoman Porte,
in place of the aid which it is bound to furnish in case of
need, according to the principle of reciprocity of the Patent
Treaty, shall confine its action in favour of the Imperial
Court of Russia to closing the Strait of the Dardanelles,
that is to say, to not allowing any Foreign Vessels of War '
to enter therein under any pretext whatsoever '. This
simply meant that if Russia was at war with any of the
European Powers, the Dardanelles would be closed to all
their war-ships, but that the Russian Fleet could pass
freely to and from the Mediterranean. The straits into the
Black Sea were to be just ' a Russian fortified post '> The
Treaty was to be in the first instance for eight years only.
The Powers of Europe were too vigilant to allow Russia
thus to have all her own way with Turkey in Europe.
Lord Palmerston, who for so long guided the foreign affairs
of England, saw the trend of Russian policy distinctly.
When the next crisis occurred in the Turkish Empire, he
arranged a joint intervention of the Powers of Europe,
and the Treaty of Unkiar Skelessi was never put in force.
The crisis came in 1839, when Sultan Mahmud sent his
army into Syria to regain it from the power of Mehemet
Ali. At Nisib Mahmud's troops were scattered to the
winds by Mehemet 's son Ibrahim. Now was the time
when Russia might have stepped in to protect Turkey,
whose independence was actually threatened by Mehemet
Ali. Lord Palmerston, however, intimated that the
affairs of Turkey were now the concern of Europe, not
a private matter between the Porte and the Tsar. On
July 15, i8402 a quadruple alliance was entered into
1 Fyffe, Modern Europe, p. 663 (ed. 1895).
2 Convention between Great Britain, Austria, Prussia and Russia,
and Turkey, for the Pacification of the Levant (London), July 15,
1840; Hcrtslet, vol. ii, No. 190.
i63 TURKEY AND THE POWERS, 1856
between Great Britain, Russia, Prussia, and Austria. France
sympathized too much with Mehemet Ali to act with the
Concert at this moment, and a war between her and Prussia
all but broke out then.1 By the end of the year 1840, the
power of Mehemet Ali had been destroyed in Syria, and
the British Admiral, Sir Charles Napier, dictated terms to
him at Alexandria. The terms were put into effect by
the Sultan, who issued an Imperial Firman or decree on
February 12, 1841, granting to Mehemet Ali the hereditary
Pashalik of Egypt.
Great Britain, Austria, Prussia, and Russia thus acting
in concert had freed the Sultan from his difficulties. They
therefore took the opportunity of settling the question of
the Bosphorus and Dardanelles. France was glad to re-
enter the concert. Russia made no attempt to renew the
Treaty of Unkiar Skelessi ; she no longer expected by
agreement with Turkey to control the Dardanelles as an
advanced fortified post. Instead the ancient custom of
the Ottoman Empire was revived by a Convention of the
Five Powers and Turkey. The Bosphorus and Dardanelles
were to be closed to foreign ships of war when the Porte
was at peace : ' so long as the Porte is at peace, His High-
ness will admit no Foreign Ship of War into the said
Straits.' 2 When the Crimean War broke out, the Porte
opened the Straits to the fleets of Great Britain and France.
When the war was concluded, the Treaty of Paris re-enacted
the rule by which the Straits were to be closed to foreign
ships of war when the Porte was at peace. Other matters
of the greatest importance for future history were dealt
with by the same treaty.
1 It was in this year, and in consequence of the threat of war,
that ' Die Wacht am Rhein ' was written by Max Schneckenburger,
a native of Thalheim, in Wurtemberg (1819-49). The music was
composed in 1854.
* Convention between Great Britain, Austria, France, Prussia,
Russia, and Turkey respecting the Straits of the Dardanelles and
the Bosphorus (London), July 13, 1841 ; Hertslet, vol. ii, No. 193.
GUARANTEE TO TURKEY 169
The preamble of the Treaty of Paris, which included
Sardinia, represented by Cavour, as one of the powers of
Europe, declared that the independence and integrity of
the Ottoman Empire are necessary for the peace of Europe.
This rule was converted into a collective1 guarantee in
Article VII, a most important article, which also declared
Turkey to be admitted into the Public Law and System
of Europe. It was understood, of course, that while thus
recognized and guaranteed as a European State, Turkey
must behave as such. Accordingly Article IX put on record
the Sultan's ' generous intentions towards the Christian
population of his Empire ', and referred to a Firman issued
on February 18, 1856, in which the Sultan had promised
a series of excellent reforms. These reforms included ' to
each sect, whatever the number of its adherents, entire
Freedom in the exercise of its Religion '. All Turkish
subjects were made admissible, without distinction of
nationality, to public employments. Taxes were to be
equal for all communities, and the system of direct collec-
tion was gradually to be substituted for the method of
fanning the revenues.2 All these reforms promised by the
Sultan, according to Article IX of the Treaty of Paris,
emanated ' spontaneously from his Sovereign will '. But
although the Treaty put on record the Sultan's ' generous
intentions towards the Christian population of his Empire ',
1 For the difference between a collective and an individual guar-
antee, see Mowat, Select Treaties, pp. xix— xx and xxxvi. The
following is the French text of Article VII of the treaty (State Papers,
vol. xlvi, p. 12) :
' VII. Sa Majeste la Reinedu Royau me Unide la Grande Bretagneet
d'Irlande, Sa Majeste 1'Empereur d'Autriche, Sa Majeste 1'Empereur
des Francais, Sa Majeste le Roi de Prusse, Sa Majeste 1'Empereur
de toutes les Russies, et Sa Majeste le Roi de Sardaigne, declarent
la Sublime Porte admise £ participer aux avantages du droit public
et du concert Europeens. Leurs Majestes s'engagent, chacune de
son cote, a respecter 1'independance et I'integrite territoriale de
1' Empire Ottoman : garantissent en commun la stricte observation
de cet engagement : et considereront, en consequence, tout acte de
nature a y porter atteinte comme une question d'interSt general.'
* Text in Hertslet, vol. ii, No. 263.
i;o TURKEY AND THE POWERS, 1856
it definitely excluded any of the signatory Powers from
claiming any right, as Russia had done, to interfere in the
relations between the Sultan and his subjects (Article IX).1
Article X enacted the principle, already laid down in the
preamble, that the Dardanelles and Bosphorus should be
kept closed to foreign ships of war when the Porte was at
peace. This was not an unfair principle, for if it prevented
Russia from sending her ships through the Dardanelles to
the Mediterranean, it also prevented other Powers from
having war-ships in the Black Sea. It has not proved
injurious to Russia's interests, as her ships have been able
to appear in the Mediterranean, having come from the
Baltic. It was from the Baltic that Admiral Rojdes-
vensky's fleet sailed in October 1904 to the Sea of Japan.
The interdiction of war-ships in the Black Sea almost
necessarily implied the prohibition of military and naval
arsenals there, as was enacted in Article XIII.2 The
invasion of the Crimea by Great Britain and France in
1854 had been directed to this end. While the Black Sea
was being neutralized, the Treaty of Paris also secured that
it should be open to the mercantile marine of every nation
(Articles XI, XII). A Convention of the same date between
Russia and Turkey (referred to in Article XIV) provided
that it should be open to each of the two Powers to keep
in the Black Sea ten light steamships for police purposes.
This Convention was not to be annulled or modified with-
out the consent of the seven Powers signing the Treaty of
Paris (Article XIV).
The Powers also took the opportunity offered by the
Congress of Paris, of regulating by international agree-
ment the navigation of the Danube. This great historic
1 It was announced in the European press on January 3, 1917,
that the Porte no longer considered itself bound by the Treaties of
Paris and Berlin, 1856 and 1878, and that it claimed accordingly
complete independence as a Power.
2 The Black Sea ceased to be neutralized in 1 87 1 ; see below,
pp. 3i2ff. See also p. ii.
NAVIGATION OF THE DANUBE 171
river was for centuries the highway of migratory nations,
who have occupied different sections of its basin. The
political difficulties in the way of its free navigation were
numerous enough, but the physical difficulties were even
greater. Yet as various States controlled parts of the
river, only by international agreement could any plan of
common improvement be provided.
Article XV of the Treaty of Paris enacted the principle
contained in the General Act of the Congress of Vienna
(Articles CVIII-CXVII), respecting the navigation of rivers
which separate or traverse different States. No toll was
to be charged for right of way, nor any duty for goods on
board the vessels. The principle of free navigation was to
form part of the Public Law of Europe, and to be guaranteed
by the signatory Powers. In order that the necessary
improvements might be made to the mouths, a European
Commission of representatives of the seven signing Powers
was established by Article XVI. The Commission was to
deal with the river below Isatcha, about sixty miles as the
crow flies from the coast. To pay for the improvements,
the Commission was given power to levy tolls for navigation
over the course of the river under its control.
In addition to the European Commission, for the improve-
ment of the mouths of the Danube, there was to be a River
Commission consisting of representatives only of those
Powers by or between whose territories the Danube
actually flowed. These Powers were Turkey, Austria-
Hungary, Bavaria, and at the head of the Danube, Wur- .
temberg. The three Danubian Principalities — Wallachia,
Moldavia, and Serbia — were still subject to Turkey, but
were to be represented separately on the River Com-
mission. This Commission was to make all necessary
improvements above Isatcha, and any political arrange-
ments necessary for the free navigation of the river, and
was to prepare regulations for properly policing it, and
controlling the navigation. It was expected (Article XVIII)
i;2 TURKEY AND THE POWERS, 1856
that the improvements would be completed within two
years. At the end of this time accordingly, the European
Commission of the seven signatory Powers was to be dis-
solved, and the River Commission was thenceforward to
have control of the whole of the Danube, both below and
above Isatcha. As a matter of fact the improvements
occupied many more years, and the River Commission
never came into existence. Instead, the European Com-
mission has continued to the present time. Its head-
quarters-are at Sulina. The Commission's powers have
been gradually extended upwards from Isatcha to Braila,
an additional thirty-seven miles, which is as far as large sea-
going ships can proceed up the river. Beyond this point
the States which possess the banks have made themselves
responsible for effecting the necessary improvements.
Articles XX to XXX refer to the three Principalities
of Moldavia, Wallachia, and Serbia, of which the first
two became the flourishing and progressive Kingdom of
Roumania. The Principalities of Moldavia and Wallachia,
although often treated in an arbitrary manner, had yet
always enjoyed a considerable amount of autonomy under
Turkish rule. Since early in the eighteenth century they
had been governed by ' Phanariot ' Greek Hospodars.1
In 1775, by the Treaty of Kutschuk-Kainardji, Russia
had put them under her protection. It was during
the war — Austria and Russia against Turkey — which pre-
ceded this treaty that the province known as Bukovina
was taken from Moldavia by the Austrians. During the
period following the Treaty of Kutschuk-Kainardji the
Russian Government, which under Article XVI had the
right to make representations to the Porte in the interests
of the Principalities, did much to secure tolerable treat-
ment for the Moldavians and Wallachians. During the
Napoleonic period there was another Russo-Turkish War,
concluded by the Treaty of Bucharest in 1812. In this
1 See p. 102.
THE BESSARABIAN FRONTIER 173
war the Russian Army had occupied the two Principalities.
They were now restored to Turkey, with the exception of
that portion of Moldavia which lay between the Pruth
and the Dniester. This portion, which is called Bessarabia,
was annexed by Russia. By the Treaties of Akerman in
1826 and of Adrianople in 1829 Russia induced Turkey to
confirm and extend the privileges of the two Principalities.
On the other hand Russia annexed the mouths of the
Danube. When the war between Russia and Turkey
broke out in 1853, Moldavia and Wallachia were occupied
by the Tsar's troops, but when the Danubian campaign
failed the Russians withdrew and the Principalities were
occupied by the Austrians.1 At this point we come to the
Treaty of Paris of 1856, a great landmark in the history
of the Principalities.
In the first place, Articles XX and XXI of the Treaty of
Paris pushed back the Russian frontier of Bessarabia, so
that Moldavia once more possessed the mouths of the
Danube and a considerable tract to the east of the River
Pruth. Secondly, the privileges of the two Principalities
were confirmed, and guaranteed by all the contracting
States, so that Russia had no longer any special position
as protecting Power (Article XXII). Articles XXIII to
XXVIII referred to plans for securing and consolidating
the administration of the two Principalities. An Inter-
national Commission was to consider schemes of reform,
and representative councils or divans were to be convoked
in Moldavia and Wallachia, ' to express the wishes of the
people in regard to the definitive organization of the
Principalities '. The result of these conditions, which were
carried into effect in 1857, was that the representative
councils in September of that year voted that the two
Principalities (still under the suzerainty of Turkey) should
no longer be administered separately, but as one State,
1 The occupation of the two Principalities by Austrian troops is
referred to in Article XXXI of the Treaty of Paris, March 30, 1856.
174 TURKEY AND THE POWERS, 1856
under the common name of Roumania. At this point the
history of the single State Roumania begins.
The union of Moldavia and Wallachia was not accepted
at once by the Powers and Turkey. The two Principalities
were left with separate national assemblies. But each
assembly (January 1859) unanimously elected the same
man for Governor, Prince Alexander Couza, belonging to
an ancient boiar or noble family of Moldavia. This union
was still forbidden by the Powers and Turkey, but the
national demand in Roumania was strong and persistent,
and was finally recognized by the Powers and the Porte
in 1861.
Articles XXVIII and XXIX confirmed the privileges of
Serbia. This country, the third of the Danubian Princi-
palities, had gained its autonomy by revolts against the
Porte between 1804 and 1817, during which the Serbs
were naturally much helped by the Russo-Turkish War of
1806-12. The Treaties of Bucharest (May 16, 1812), of
Akerman (October 7, 1826), of Adrianople (September 14,
1829), all between Russia and Turkey, secured to Serbia
— somewhat vaguely — her privileges as a subject and
tributary nation. These privileges, however, were defined
by the Imperial decrees referred to in Article XXVIII
of the Treaty of Paris, and gave Serbia a considerable
degree of autonomy under the national Prince Milosh
Obrenovitch.
Article XXXIII is a very important one, prohibiting
the fortifying of the Aland Islands by Russia, a provision
strengthened by a separate Convention between Great
Britain, France, and Russia of the same date. The Aland
Islands lie at the entrance of the Gulf of Bothnia, and
command the great Swedish port and capital city of
Stockholm. They had been ceded with Finland to Russia
at the Treaty of Friedrichshamm (September 5, 1809).
The Swedes were naturally desirous that the islands which
so menaced their trade and national defence should not
MARITIME LAW 175
be fortified, and the British Government was generally
sympathetic with them. But it was not till the Crimean
War, when an Anglo-French fleet entered the Baltic, that
the Powers showed their determination to satisfy the
wishes of the Swedes. Article XXXIII of the Treaty of
Paris and the Aland Convention were the result. The
Russian Government has always felt this restriction upon
their right to fortify their own possessions as somewhat
galling and humiliating, but the Convention has never
been abrogated.
Finally, it should be noticed that the Powers assembled
in Congress at Paris, while making the general settlement
required by the Crimean War, took the opportunity to
make a Declaration respecting Maritime Law in time of
war. This momentous Declaration, which has never been
denounced, is a masterpiece of brevity and clearness, and
its effect on International Law cannot be over-estimated.
The Declaration of Paris respecting Maritime Law was
acceded to by most of the Maritime Powers.1
It was not formally acceded to by the United States,
because that Government wished to add to it a stipulation
for the non-liability of private property to capture at sea.
As this did not form a part of the Declaration as signed,
the conditional acceptance of the Declaration could not
be regarded as an absolute accession to that agreement.
On the outbreak of war between the United States and
Spain in 1898, however, the President of the United States
issued a Proclamation,2 in which he stated that it had
already been announced that the policy of his Government
would be not to resort to privateering, but to adhere to
the rules of the Declaration of Paris ; and the Proclama-
tion went on to declare that :
i. The neutral flag covers enemies' goods, with the
exception of contraband of war. 2. Neutral goods not
1 List on p. 1284 of Hertslet's Map of Europe, vol. ii.
e April 26, 1898; see State Papers, vol. xc, p. 380.
176 TURKEY AND THE POWERS, 1856
contraband of war are not liable to confiscation under the
enemy's flag. 3. Blockades in order to be binding must
be effective. Then follow other rules not comprised in
the Declaration.
In effect, therefore, the United States have acted on the
principles of the Declaration, though not formally acceding
to it.
GENERAL TREATY OF PEACE BETWEEN GREAT BRITAIN,
AUSTRIA, FRANCE, PRUSSIA, RUSSIA, SARDINIA, AND
TURKEY. SIGNED AT PARIS, SOTH MARCH, I856.1
ARTICLE I. From the day of the exchange of the Ratifica-
tions of the present Treaty there shall be Peace and Friend-
ship between Her Majesty the Queen of the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Ireland, His Majesty the Emperor of
the French, His Majesty the King of Sardinia, His Imperial
Majesty the Sultan, on the one part, and His Majesty the
Emperor of All the Russias, on the other part ; as well
as between their heirs and successors, their respective
dominions and subjects, in perpetuity.
ARTICLE II. Peace being happily re-established between
their said Majesties, the Territories conquered or occupied
by their armies during the War shall be reciprocally
evacuated.
Special arrangements shall regulate the mode of the
Evacuation, which shall be as prompt as possible.
ARTICLE III. His Majesty the Emperor of All the
Russias engages to restore to His Majesty the Sultan the
Town and Citadel of Kars, as well as the other parts of
the Ottoman Territory of which the Russian troops are in
possession.
ARTICLE IV. Their Majesties the Queen of the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Emperor of
the French, the King of Sardinia, and the Sultan, engage
to restore to His Majesty the Emperor of All the Russias,
the Towns and Ports of Sebastopol, Balaklava, Kamiesch,
Eupatoria, Kertcb, Jenikale, Kinburn, as well as all other
Territories occupied by the Allied Troops.
ARTICLE V. Their Majesties the Queen of the United
1 State Papers, vol. xlvi, p. 18 ; Hertslet, vol. ii, No. 264.
TREATY OF 1856 177
Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Emperor of
the French, the Emperor of All the Russias, the King of
Sardinia, and the Sultan, grant a full and entire Amnesty
to those of their subjects who may have been compromised
by any participation whatsoever in the events of the War
in favour of the cause of the enemy.
It is expressly understood that such Amnesty shall
extend to the subjects of each of the Belligerent Parties
who may have continued, during the War, to be employed
in the service of one of the other Belligerents.
ARTICLE VI. Prisoners of War shall be immediately
given up on either side.
ARTICLE VII. Her Majesty the Queen of the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, His Majesty the
Emperor of Austria, His Majesty the Emperor of the
French, His Majesty the King of Prussia, His Majesty the
Emperor of All the Russias, and His Majesty the King
of Sardinia, declare the Sublime Porte admitted to par-
ticipate in the advantages of the Public Law and System
(Concert) of Europe. Their Majesties engage, each on his
part, to respect the Independence and the Territorial
Integrity of the Ottoman Empire ; Guarantee in common
the strict observance of that engagement ; and will, in
consequence, consider any act tending to its violation as
a question of general interest.
ARTICLE VIII. If there should arise between the Sub-
lime Porte and one or more of the other Signing Powers,
any misunderstanding which might endanger the main-
tenance of their relations, the Sublime Porte, and each of
such Powers, before having recourse to the use of force,
shall afford the other Contracting Parties the opportunity
of preventing such an extremity by means of their Media-
tion.
ARTICLE IX. His Imperial Majesty the Sultan having,
in his constant solicitude for the welfare of his subjects,
issued a Firman, which, while ameliorating then* condition
without distinction of Religion or of Race, records his
generous intentions towards the Christian population of
his Empire, and wishing to give a further proof of his
sentiments in that respect, has resolved to communicate
to the Contracting Parties the said Firman, emanating
spontaneously from his Sovereign will.
The Contracting Powers recognise the high value of this
1903
178 TURKEY AND THE POWERS, 1856
communication. It is clearly understood that it cannot,
in any case, give to the said Powers the right to interfere,
either collectively or separately, in the relations of His
Majesty the Sultan with his subjects, nor in the Internal
Administration of his Empire.
ARTICLE X. The Convention of i3th of July, 1841,
which maintains the ancient rule of the Ottoman Empire
relative to the Closing of the Straits of the Bosphorus and
of Dardanelles, has been revised by common consent.
The Act concluded for that purpose, and in conformity
with that principle, between the High Contracting Parties,
is and remains annexed to the present Treaty, and shall
have the same force and validity as if it formed an integral
part thereof.
ARTICLE XI. The Black Sea is Neutralised ; its Waters
and its Ports, thrown open to the Mercantile Marine of
every Nation, are formally and in perpetuity interdicted
to the Flag of War, either of the Powers possessing its
Coasts, or of any other Power, with the exceptions men-
tioned in Articles XIV and XIX of the present Treaty.
ARTICLE XII. Free from any impediment, the Commerce
in the Ports and Waters of the Black Sea shall be subject
only to Regulations of Health, Customs, and Police, framed
in a spirit favourable to the development of Commercial
transactions.
In order to afford to the Commercial and Maritime
interests of every Nation the security which is desired,
Russia and the Sublime Porte will admit Consuls into
their Ports situated upon the Coast of the Black Sea, in
conformity with the principles of International Law.
ARTICLE XIII. The Black Sea being Neutralised accord-
ing to the terms of Article XI, the maintenance or estab-
lishment upon its Coast of Military-Maritime Arsenals
becomes alike unnecessary and purposeless ; in con-
sequence, His Majesty the Emperor of All the Russias,
and His Imperial Majesty the Sultan, engage not to
establish or to maintain upon that Coast any Military-
Maritime Arsenal.
ARTICLE XIV. Their Majesties the Emperor of All the
Russias and the Sultan having concluded a Convention
for the purpose of settling the Force and the Number of
Light Vessels, necessary for the service of their Coasts,
which they reserve to themselves to maintain in the Black
TREATY OF 1856 179
Sea, that Convention is annexed to the present Treaty,
and shall have the same force and validity as if it formed
an integral part thereof. It cannot be either annulled or
modified without the assent of the Powers signing the
present Treaty.
ARTICLE XV. The Act of the Congress of Vienna,
having established the principles intended to regulate the
Navigation of Rivers which separate or traverse different
States, the Contracting Powers stipulate among them-
selves that those principles shall in future be equally
applied to the Danube and its Mouths. They declare that
its arrangement henceforth forms a part of the Public Law
of Europe, and take it under their Guarantee.
The Navigation of the Danube cannot be subjected to
any impediment or charge not expressly provided for by
the Stipulations contained in the following Articles: in
consequence, there shall not be levied any Toll founded
solely upon the fact of the Navigation of the River, nor
any Duty upon the Goods which may be on board of
Vessels. The Regulations of Police and of Quarantine to
be established for the safety of the States separated or
traversed by that River, shall be so framed as to facilitate,
as much as possible, the passage of Vessels. With the
exception of such Regulations, no obstacle whatever shall
be opposed to Free Navigation.
ARTICLE XVI. With a view to carry out the arrange-
ments of the preceding Article, a Commission, in which
Great Britain, Austria, France, Prussia, Russia, Sardinia,
and Turkey, shall each be represented by one delegate,
shall be charged to designate and to cause to be executed
the Works necessary below Isatcha, to clear the Mouths
of the Danube, as well as the neighbouring parts of the
Sea, from the sands and other impediments which obstruct
them, in order to put that part of the River and the said
parts of the Sea in the best possible state for Navigation.
In order to cover the Expenses of such Works, as well
as of the establishments intended to secure and to facilitate
the Navigation at the Mouths of the Danube, fixed Duties,
of a suitable rate, settled by the Commission by a majority
of votes, may be levied, on the express condition that, in
this respect as in every other, the Flags of all Nations shall
be treated on the footing of perfect equality.
ARTICLE XVII. A Commission shall be established, and
N 2
180 TURKEY AND THE POWERS, 1856
shall be composed of delegates of Austria, Bavaria, the
Sublime Porte, and Wurtemberg (one for each of those
Powers), to whom shall be added Commissioners from the
Three Danubian Principalities, whose nomination shall
have been approved by the Porte. This Commission,
which shall be permanent : i. Shall prepare Regulations
of Navigation and River Police ; 2. Shall remove the
impediments, of whatever nature they may be, which still
prevent the application to the Danube of the Arrangements
of the Treaty of Vienna ; 3. Shall order and cause to be
executed the necessary Works throughout the whole course
of the River ; and 4. Shall, after the dissolution of the
European Commission, see to maintaining the Mouths of
the Danube and the neighbouring parts of the Sea in
a navigable state.
ARTICLE XVIII. It is understood that the European
Commission shall have completed its task, and that the
River Commission shall have finished the Works described
in the preceding Article, under Nos. i and 2, within the
period of two years. The signing Powers assembled in
Conference having been informed of that fact, shall, after
having placed it on record, pronounce the Dissolution of
the European Commission, and from that time the per-
manent River Commission shall enjoy the same powers as
those with which the European Commission shall have
until then been invested.
ARTICLE XIX. In order to insure the execution of the
Regulations which shall have been established by common
agreement, in conformity with the principles above declared,
each of the Contracting Powers shall have the right to
station, at all times, Two Light Vessels at the Mouths of
the Danube.
ARTICLE XX. In exchange for the Towns, Ports, and
Territories enumerated in Article IV of the present Treaty,
and in order more fully to secure the Freedom of the
Navigation of the Danube, His Majesty the Emperor of
All the Russias consents to the rectification of his Frontier
in Bessarabia.
The new Frontier shall begin from the Black Sea, one
kilometre to the east of the Lake Bourna Sola, shall run
perpendicularly to the Akerman Road, shall follow that
road to the Val de Trajan, pass to the south of Bolgrad,
ascend the course of the River Yalpuck to the Height of
TREATY OF 1856 181
Saratsika, and terminate at Katamori on the Pruth.
Above that point the old Frontier between the Two Empires
shall not undergo any modification.
Delegates of the Contracting Powers shall fix, in its
details, the Line of the new Frontier.
ARTICLE XXI. The Territory ceded by Russia shall be
Annexed to the Principality of Moldavia, under the
Suzerainty of the Sublime Porte.
The Inhabitants of that Territory shall enjoy the Rights
and Privileges secured to the Principalities ; and during
the space of 3 years, they shall be permitted to trans-
fer their domicile elsewhere, disposing freely of their
Property.
ARTICLE XXII. The Principalities of Wallachia and
Moldavia shall continue to enjoy under the Suzerainty of
the Porte, and under the Guarantee of the Contracting
Powers, the Privileges and Immunities of which they are
in possession. No exclusive Protection shall be exercised
over them by any of the guaranteeing Powers.
There shall be no separate right of interference in their
Internal Affairs.
ARTICLE XXIII. The Sublime Porte engages to preserve
to the said Principalities an Independent and National
Administration, as well as full liberty of Worship, of
Legislation, of Commerce, and of Navigation.
The Laws and Statutes at present in force shall be
revised. In order to establish a complete agreement in
regard to such revision, a Special Commission, as to the
composition of which the High Contracting Powers will
come to an understanding among themselves, shall assemble -,
without delay, at Bucharest, together with a Commissioner
of the Sublime Porte.
The business of this Commission shall be to investigate
the present state of the Principalities, and to propose bases
for their future organization.
ARTICLE XXIV. His Majesty the Sultan promises to
convoke immediately in each of the two Provinces a Divan
ad hoc, composed in such a manner as to represent most
closely the interests of all classes of society. These Divans
shall be called upon to express the wishes of the people
in regard to the definitive organization of the Principalities.
An Instruction from the Congress shall regulate the
relations between the Commission and these Divans.
i82 TURKEY AND THE POWERS, 1856
ARTICLE XXV. Taking into consideration the opinion
expressed by the two Divans, the Commission shall transmit,
without delay, to the present seat of the Conferences, the
result of its own labours.
The Final Agreement with the Suzerain Power shall be
recorded in a Convention to be concluded at Paris between
the High Contracting Parties ; and a Hatti-sheriff , in
conformity with the stipulations of the Convention, shall
constitute definitively the organization of those Provinces,
placed thenceforward under the Collective Guarantee of all
the signing Powers.
ARTICLE XXVI. It is agreed that there shall be in the
Principalities a National Armed Force, organized with the
view to maintain the security of the interior, and to ensure
that of the Frontiers. No impediment shall be opposed to
the extraordinary measures of defence which, by agree-
ment with the Sublime Porte, they may be called upon to
take in order to repel any external aggression.
ARTICLE XXVII. If the Internal Tranquillity of the
Principalities should be menaced or compromised, the
Sublime Porte shall come to an understanding with the
other Contracting Powers in regard to the measures to be
taken for maintaining or re-establishing legal order.
No armed Intervention can take place without previous
agreement between those Powers.
ARTICLE XXVIII. The Principality of Servia shall
continue to hold of the Sublime Porte, in conformity with
the Imperial Hats which fix and determine its Rights and
Immunities, placed henceforward under the Collective
Guarantee of the Contracting Powers.
In consequence, the said Principality shall preserve its
Independent and National Administration, as well as full
Liberty of Worship, of Legislation, of Commerce, and of
Navigation.
ARTICLE XXIX. The right of garrison of the Sublime
Porte, as stipulated by anterior regulations, is maintained.
No armed Intervention can take place in Servia without
previous agreement between the High Contracting Powers.
ARTICLE XXX. His Majesty the Emperor of All the
Russias and His Majesty the Sultan maintain in its Integrity
the state of their possessions in Asia such as it legally
existed before the rupture.
In order to prevent all local dispute the Line of Frontier
TREATY OF 1856 183
shall be verified, and, if necessary, rectified, without any
prejudice as regards Territory being sustained by either
Party.
For this purpose a Mixed Commission, composed of two
Russian Commissioners, two Ottoman Commissioners, one
English Commissioner, and one French Commissioner,
shall be sent to the spot immediately after the re-establish-
ment of diplomatic relations between the Court of Russia
and the Sublime Porte. Its labours shall be completed
within the period of 8 months after the exchange of the
Ratifications of the present Treaty.
ARTICLE XXXI. The Territories occupied during the
War by the troops of their Majesties the Queen of the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Emperor
of Austria, the Emperor of the French, and the King of
Sardinia, according to the terms of the Conventions signed
at Constantinople on the I2th of March, 1854, between
Great Britain, France, and the Sublime Porte ; on the
I4th of June of the same year, between Austria and the
Sublime Porte ; and on the I5th of March, 1855, between
Sardinia and the Sublime Porte ; shall be evacuated as
soon as possible after the exchange of the Ratifications of
the present Treaty. The periods and the means of execution
shall form the object of an arrangement between the
Sublime Porte and the Powers whose troops have occupied
its Territory.
ARTICLE XXXII. Until the Treaties or Conventions
which existed before the War between the Belligerent
Powers have been either renewed or replaced by new Acts,
Commerce of importation or of exportation shall take place
reciprocally on the footing of the regulations in force
before the War ; and in all other matters their subjects
shall be respectively treated upon the footing of the Most
Favoured Nation.
ARTICLE XXXIII. The Convention concluded this day
between their Majesties the Queen of the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Ireland, the Emperor of the French,
on the one part, and His Majesty the Emperor of All the
Russias on the other part, respecting the Aland Islands, is
and remains annexed to the present Treaty, and shall
have the same force and validity as if it formed a part
thereof.
ARTICLE XXXIV. The present Treaty shall be ratified,
184 TURKEY AND THE POWERS, 1856
and the Ratifications shall be exchanged at Paris in the
space of 4 weeks, or sooner if possible.
In witness whereof the respective Plenipotentiaries have
signed the same, and have affixed thereto the Seal of their
Arms.
Done at Paris, the 3oth day of the month of March, in
the year 1856.
(L.S.) CLARENDON.
(L.S.) COWLEY.
(L.S.) BUOL-SCHAUENSTEIN.
(L.S.) HUBNER.
(L.S.) A. WALEWSKI.
(L.S.) BOURQUENEY.
(L.S.) MANTEUFFEL.
(L.S.) C. M. D'HATZFELDT.
(L.S.) ORLOFF.
(L.S.) BRUNNOW.
(L.S.) C. CAVOUR.
(L.S.) DE VILLAMARINA.
(L.S.) AALI.
(L.S.) MEHEMMED DJEMIL.
CONVENTION BETWEEN GREAT BRITAIN, AUSTRIA, FRANCE,
PRUSSIA, RUSSIA, AND SARDINIA, ON THE ONE PART,
AND THE SULTAN, ON THE OTHER PART, RESPECTING
THE STRAITS OF THE DARDANELLES AND OF THE
BOSPHORUS. SIGNED AT PARIS, SOTH MARCH, I856.1
ARTICLE I. His Majesty the Sultan, on the one part,
declares that he is firmly resolved to maintain for the future
the principle invariably established as the ancient rule of
his Empire, and in virtue of which it has, at all tunes,
been prohibited for the Ships of War of Foreign Powers to
enter the Straits of the Dardanelles and of the Bosphorus;
and that, so long as the Porte is at Peace, His Majesty will
admit no Foreign Ship of War into the said Straits.
And Their Majesties the Queen of the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Ireland, the Emperor of Austria, the
Emperor of the French, the King of Prussia, the Emperor
of All the Russias, and the King of Sardinia, on the other
part, engage to respect this determination of the Sultan,
and to conform themselves to the principle above declared.
1 State Papers, vol. xlvi, p. 18 ; Hertslet, vol. ii, p. 265.
CONVENTION OF 1856 185
ARTICLE II. The Sultan reserves to himself, as in past
times, to deliver Firmans of Passage for Light Vessels
under Flag of War, which shall be employed, as is usual in
the service of the Missions of Foreign Powers.
ARTICLE III. The same exception applies to the Light
Vessels under Flag of War, which each of the Contracting
Powers is authorised to station at the Mouths of the
Danube in order to secure the execution of the Regulations
relative to the liberty of that River, and the number of
which is not to exceed two for each Power.
DECLARATION SIGNED BY THE PLENIPOTENTIARIES OF
GREAT BRITAIN, AUSTRIA, FRANCE, PRUSSIA, RUSSIA,
SARDINIA, AND TURKEY, RESPECTING MARITIME LAW.
PARIS, i6TH APRIL, I856.1
Privateering.
1. Privateering is, and remains abolished ;
Neutral Flag.
2. The Neutral Flag covers Enemy's Goods, with the
exception of Contraband of War ;
Neutral Goods.
3. Neutral Goods, with the exception of Contraband of
War, are not liable to capture under Enemy's Flag ;
Blockades.
4. Blockades, in order to be binding, must be effective,
that is to say, maintained by a force sufficient really to
prevent access to the coast of the enemy.
1 State Papers, vol. xlvi, p. 26 ; Hertslet, vol. ii, No. 271.
CHAPTER VI
THE DANISH DUCHIES
Duchy of Holstein — Duchy of Schleswig — Lauenburg — Rescript
of 1846 — Hostilities in the Duchies — Treaty of 1850 — Treaty
of London, 1852 — The Ordinance of 1853 — The Constitution
of November 1 863 — Lord Palmerston — The Danish and German
"Cases — The Powers of Europe — Treaty of Peace, 1864 —
Convention of Gastein — Dispatch of Earl Russell.
Texts : The Treaty of London (1852) — The Treaty of Vienna ( 1 864) .
THE question of the Succession to the Danish Crown,
and that relating to the affairs of the Danish Duchies, to
which the above-cited treaties respectively have reference,
are to so great an extent related to one another that it will
be more convenient and less conducive to repetition to deal
with both treaties together rather than to separate them
into two distinct subjects in their chronological order.
The Duchy of Holstein, though owing allegiance to
Denmark, became included in the Germanic Confederation
by virtue of Article LIII of the Vienna Congress Treaty of
1815, which declared that ' the Sovereign Princes and Free
Towns of Germany, under which denomination for the
present purpose are comprehended their Majesties the
Emperor of Austria, the Kings of Prussia, of Denmark
and of* The Netherlands, that is to say . . . The King of
Denmark for the Duchy of Holstein . . ., establish among
themselves a perpetual Confederation which shall be called
the Germanic Confederation '.
The Duchy of Schleswig, long under the sway of the
Kings of Denmark, was claimed by Denmark in virtue of
guarantees given by Great Britain and France in 1720 and
of the treaties concluded with Russia in 1767 and 1773.*
1 See Rescript of the King of Denmark, July 8, 1846 ; State Papers,
vol. xl, p. 1261.
DUCHY OF SCHLESWIG 187
The relationship of Schleswig to Denmark differed there-
fore from that of Holstein.
Thus in the eighteenth century Schleswig was a possession
of the Danish Crown but not incorporated with the Danish
territories. She was bound to Holstein by various interests,
and German was the official language. She possessed a
separate Diet conferred upon her by Frederick VI, who,
however, bound the two Duchies together by placing them
under a Ministry and a Supreme Court common to both.
This intimate connexion in the course of time caused
Schleswig to become more and more German, and in the
nineteenth century a large portion of the population spoke
German. The Danes at length took steps to preserve the
nationality of the Duchy by encouraging the use of the
Danish language and by other means. This procedure became
a grievance to the German population of the Duchies, and by
degrees a Schleswig-Holstein party grew up, and the demand
was formulated that they should be made independent of
Denmark and be constituted one State within the Germanic
Confederation. The Duke of Augustenburg, the leader of
this party, a descendant of King Christian III, hoped to
acquire the Duchies for himself and his House in the event
of the Danish royal line becoming extinct — an event which
seemed probable — and he accordingly sought support in
Germany, and succeeded in setting on foot an enthusiastic
national movement there in favour of the demands of the
Duchies. The Scandinavian countries, on the other hand,
were in favour of the views of the national party in
Denmark.
The Duchy of Lauenburg was ceded by Prussia to
Denmark ' in full sovereignty ' by the Treaty of June 4,
iSis.1 Like Holstein, however, she formed one of the
States of the Germanic Confederation, and the King of
Denmark ratified the final Act of the Confederation in
1820 in the conjoint character of Duke of Holstein and
1 State Papers, vol. ii, p. 182.
i88 THE DANISH DUCHIES
Duke of Lauenburg.1 Lauenburg, however, was not deeply
involved in the questions affecting Schleswig-Holstein.
In 1831 the King of Denmark (whose authority in
Schleswig and Holstein had up to that time been absolute)
issued an ordinance for the erection of Provincial States in
Schleswig and Holstein resembling those which had been
established by most of the German sovereigns in accord-
ance with the Federal Act of 1815, the powers of these
States being consultative only.2 Similar States were at
the same time decreed for the Kingdom of Denmark
proper.3 This arrangement seems to have worked smoothly
for some years, until the grievances already alluded to
assumed shape in the Duchies, when the King, after
long hesitation between the views of the Danish national
party and those of the Duchies, appointed a commission
to inquire into the relations of the Duchies towards the
sovereign State. As a result His Majesty issued a Royal
Rescript on July 8, 1846 4 respecting the order of succes-
sion to the several territories composing the Danish
monarchy, with regard to which, it was therein stated,
' confused and incorrect notions ' appeared to prevail.
The question, it went on to say, had been investigated by
a special commission, the result of whose labours had been
to establish the fact that the order of succession was
indisputable in the case of Lauenburg and Schleswig, but
that with respect to Holstein there were circumstances
which stood in the way of expressing the same certainty
as to the inheritance-right of all the royal successors to
the Danish Crown. ' Meantime ', proceeded the Rescript,
' while we would most graciously assure all our true
subjects, and especially the inhabitants of Holstein, that
our exertions have been and shall be unremittingly
directed to remove the hindrances in question and to
1 See Sir Travers Twiss' work on the Duchies (1848), p. 2.
* State Papers, vol. xviii, p. 1292. 8 Ibid., p. 1290.
4 Ibid., vol. xl, p. 1261.
RESCRIPT OF 1846 189
effectuate a complete acknowledgement of the integrity
of the whole Danish State so as that the territories at
present collected under our sceptre shall at no time be
separated but shall constantly remain together under
their present relations, and in the enjoyment of all the
special privileges belonging to each individually, so
would we at the same time in an especial manner hereby
assure our true subjects of the Duchy of Schleswig that
by this letter it is by no means intended to infringe in
any way on the Independence of that Duchy such as it
has hitherto been by us acknowledged, nor to make any
change in the other relations which do now connect the
same with the Duchy of Holstein ; but, on the contrary,
we would rather hereby renew our promise, henceforward
as heretofore, to protect our Duchy of Schleswig in the
rights belonging to the same as a territory in itself in-
dependent but yet inseparably connected with our
Monarchy.'
This Royal Rescript, far from having the reassuring
effect which seems to have been contemplated, appears,
on the contrary, to have given rise in the Duchies to dis-
trust and alarm. By way of protesting against it, and of
emphasizing their views on the subject of their inde-
pendence, the Duchies withdrew themselves from the
Provincial States, and petitioned the King of Denmark
on the subject. The King refused to receive the petitions,
and Holstein accordingly sent deputies to the Germanic
Diet to lay the case before them. The Diet thereupon
expressed their non-acquiescence in the refusal of the
King to receive the petitions, but pronounced no opinion
on the general question at issue, namely the supposed
innovations created by the Danish Rescript, and the
divergence of views therein expressed.
Popular demonstrations in the Duchies followed, fomented
by the Augustenburg faction in Germany. On the 'death
of the King of Denmark in January 1848 they declared
their independence and hostilities ensued. On an appeal
from Holstein, Prussian troops (as part of the Federal
Army) were sent into that Duchy to resist the Danes.
igo THE DANISH DUCHIES
About this time, and subsequently, Austria and Prussia
were working against each other for predominance in
Germany. The Tsar of Russia urgently demanded the
conclusion of the Schleswig-Holstein complication, which
he considered to be due to nothing but the intrigues of
malevolent revolutionaries in Copenhagen and the Duchies.
He declared that in the event of the German question
resulting in war between Austria and Prussia, his neutrality
would be conditional upon the restoration of Danish
supremacy over the rebels in Schleswig-Holstein.
The reactionary party meanwhile gained the upper hand
in Germany ; Frederick William IV of Prussia so far
surrendered on the Duchies question as to declare that he
could not conscientiously support national against mon-
archical rights ; Preliminaries of Peace were signed between
Denmark and Prussia on July 10, 1849 (Great Britain
acting as mediator), and it was agreed that on the con-
clusion of a definitive peace the Great Powers of Europe
should be approached with a view to regulating the Danish
Order of Succession.1
Finally, on July 2, 1850, a definitive Treaty of Peace
was signed at Berlin between the King of Prussia in his
own name and in that of the Germanic Confederation, and
Denmark. By this treaty all rights which existed before
the war, on either side, were reserved ; boundaries arranged
for ; and the right conceded to Denmark to claim the
intervention of the Germanic Confederation for the re-
establishment of legitimate authority in Holstein. But
the questions which led to the war were not thereby set
at rest, and hostilities between Denmark and the Duchies
were resumed. Denmark eventually claimed the inter-
vention of the Confederation under the Treaty of 1850.
Austrian and Prussian commissioners then entered Holstein
and negotiations ensued, which culminated in January
1852 in an arrangement roughly to the following effect : — •
1 State Papers, vol. xxxvii, p. 132.
TREATY OF 1850 191
1. Schleswig should not be incorporated with Denmark.
2. Non-political ties between Schleswig and Hoist ein
should be maintained. 3. One part of the Danish Monarchy
should not be subordinate to the other. 4. The Duchies
should have their own Ministers of the Interior and voting
power in certain internal matters. 5. The Duchies should
have an administrative and constitutional separation.
6. A Treaty should be concluded for settling the question
of the Succession to the Danish Monarchy. These negotia-
tions were conducted in conjunction with Great Britain
as Mediating Power.
Before the definitive Treaty of Peace was concluded,
Great Britain, on the strength of the Preliminaries of
1849, took up the question of the succession to the throne
of Denmark.1 In February 1850 Lord Palmerston urged
on the Danish Government the importance of settling,
without delay, this question which, he stated, was the key
to the whole of the questions pending between Denmark
and Germany. The choice of some Prince to succeed to
the Danish Crown who would equally succeed to Holstein
and to Schleswig, would remove the chief difficulty and
avoid the separation of the Duchies from Denmark on the
failure of the direct line.
After prolonged negotiations through the medium of
a voluminous correspondence, in the course of which the
King of Denmark designated the House of Gliicksburg
(Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glucks-
burg and the issue of His Highness's marriage with the
Princess Louisa, born a Princess of Hesse) as successors to
the Danish Crown, and by means of Conferences held at
London and elsewhere, the representatives of the Powers
finally met at London arid signed the Treaty of May 8,
1852, the object of which, according to the preamble, was
' the maintenance of the integrity of the Danish Monarchy,
as connected with the general interests of the balance of
1 Correspondence, State Papers, vol. xlii, p. 831.
192 THE DANISH DUCHIES
power in Europe '. This treaty recognized Prince Christian
as the eventual successor to the whole of the dominions
then united under the sceptre of the King of Denmark.
The question of submitting the treaty to the Diet of the
Germanic Confederation was decided in the negative.
The claims of the Agnates of the royal families to eventual
succession to the Duchies were settled either by spontaneous
renunciations of their rights, or by compensation, or in the
case of remote contingencies by simply ignoring them.
On July 31, 1853, a Royal Ordinance was promulgated
by the King of Denmark settling the succession to the
Crown of that country on Prince Christian of Glucksburg
and his male heirs, in virtue of the Treaty of May 8, 1852,
concluded between Austria, France, Great Britain, Prussia,
Russia, Sweden and Norway, and Denmark, and acceded
to by most of the European Powers.1
The work of framing Constitutions for the Duchies was
then entered upon, and this gave rise to much controversy
and many grievances, and complaints that Denmark was
neglecting to fulfil the promises made at the time of the
conclusion of the Succession Treaty. This went on
until in February 1858 the Diet of the Germanic Con-
federation demanded the fulfilment of those promises
affecting the equality and independence of the Duchies,
but nothing satisfactory resulted. In 1863 the King of
Denmark decreed independent rights to Holstein, and
elaborated a Constitution for Denmark and Schleswig
which was held virtually to incorporate Schleswig with
the Danish Monarchy, but he died before its promulgation,
in November 1 863 . He was succeeded by King Christian IX ,
who had been designated by the Treaty of London of May 8,
1852, and by the consequent Royal Ordinance of July 31,
1853, as the successor to the throne of Denmark, and
to the sovereignty of the Duchies. His first act was
to sign the November Constitution of the Danish party.
1 Slate Papers, vol. xlii, p. 1184.
CONSTITUTION OF NOVEMBER 1863 193
The Duke of Augustenburg then claimed the sovereignty
of the Duchies, and was supported by Austria and Prussia
and the Germanic Confederation, in spite of the treaty
to which the two first-named Powers had affixed their
signatures in 1852. They excused their disregard of the
treaty stipulation on the grounds that the treaty had not
been submitted to the German Diet and that Denmark
had broken her promises of 1851-2 ; and they refused
to recognize the right of Christian IX to succeed to the
sovereignty of the Duchies except on the condition that
the November Constitution was annulled. England
strongly advised Denmark to withdraw the Constitution,
and Denmark showed herself ready to follow this advice,
but before the proposal could be carried out Austrian
and Prussian troops invaded the Duchies and war ensued.
Lord Palmerston, the English Prime Minister, described
the entrance of troops into Schleswig as an ' iniquitous
aggression*. If the German Powers had waited a couple
of months, he explained, so as to enable Denmark to
withdraw the Constitution, as, on the advice of England,
she was prepared to do, no war need have been made.
The war was unnecessary, and therefore ' iniquitous '.
This was in reply to observations made by the Austrian
Government. In connexion with a remark made by
the same Government on the principle that war abrogates
treaties, Lord Palmerston observed that ' to make an ag-
gressive war for the very purpose of abrogating them would
be a great and evident abuse of an admitted principle '.x
It would be impossible within the limits of the present
work to discuss at length the rights and wrongs of the
Duchies question from the points of view of the various
Powers interested. The Danish Government maintained
that Schleswig was altogether removed from any interference
on the part of the Germanic Confederation, and that as
1 Lord Russell to Lord Bloomfield, Febniary 24, 1864. Blue
Book, ' Denmark and Germany ', No. 5, 1864.
18J3
194 THE DANISH DUCHIES
regards Holstein, Denmark had already conferred a great
measure of independence upon her. The German Govern-
ments held that, inasmuch as Holstein was a member of
the Germanic Confederation, the latter had the right of
interference in respect of that Duchy. They appear also
to have advanced an indirect claim in respect of Schleswig
by reason of the long existing administrative connexion
between the two Duchies. Moreover, as regards the period
from 1851 onwards, there were the undertakings entered
into by Denmark with the Austro-Prussian Commissioners
in 1851-2, amongst them being the stipulation that
Schleswig should not be incorporated with Denmark, that
non-political ties between the two Duchies should be main-
tained, that one part of the Danish Monarchy should not be
subordinate to another, &c. The German States maintained
that Denmark had not fulfilled these undertakings : on the
contrary, that Schleswig was virtually incorporated with
Denmark by the common Constitution of November 1863,
that the compulsory use of the Danish language in schools
and churches in the Germanized po'rtions of Schleswig was
a contravention of the promised equality, and so forth.
There was something to be said, and much was said, in
support of these opposing contentions. No doubt there
was truth in the remark of the Tsar of Russia to the
effect that the Schleswig-Holstein complication was mainly
due to the intrigues of malevolent revolutionaries both in
Denmark and in the Duchies. As a consequence of the
efforts of the Augustenburg faction, the populations of
Germany became permeated with the idea that the cause
of the ' downtrodden ' inhabitants of the Duchies must
be espoused by them in opposition to the ' tyranny ' of
Denmark. So much so that on the revival of the Augusten-
burg claims at the death of Frederick VII of Denmark in
1863, more than one of the German monarchs declared
that the outcry for war amongst their subjects was so
strong that they dared not resist it, having due regard for
DANISH AND GERMAN CASES 195
the safety of their thrones. Denmark sought alliances in
her resistance to the Germans, but none were forthcoming.1
Russia was unwilling to commit herself to take up arms
in support of Denmark. She was herself only just emerg-
ing from her difficulties arising out of the insurrection in
Poland. France and Great Britain urged mediation and
furnished remonstrances, but were disinclined for more
drastic measures. Great Britain besides was also some-
what preoccupied with the Civil War in the United States.
Sweden could not throw in her lot with Denmark single-
handed, although she had previously been prepared to
sign a treaty of defensive alliance with her. This com-
bination of circumstances cleared the way for the fulfil-
ment of German designs and the advance of the policy
of Bismarck, and accordingly hostilities were begun.
Conferences for re-establishing peace were held in
London from April to June 1864, but they broke down
over the question of the boundary between Denmark and
Schleswig, and no agreement was arrived at. Denmark
was defeated by her enemies in the field, and a Treaty of
Peace was signed at Vienna between Austria, Prussia, and
Denmark on October 30, i864,2 whereby Denmark re-
nounced all her rights over the Duchies of Schleswig,
Holstein, and Lauenburg in favour of the King of Prussia
and the Emperor of Austria, engaging to recognize the
dispositions which their said Majesties should make with
reference to those Duchies. A small portion only of
Northern Schleswig was to be incorporated into the King-
dom of Denmark.
Soon after the conclusion of the Treaty of 1864 Bismarck
submitted to the Austrian Government the terms on which
the Duchies might be conferred upon the Duke of August en-
burg according to the proposal put forward in 1863. He
1 For a discussion of Great Britain's responsibility see Egerton,
British Foreign Policy in Europe (1917), pp. 276 ff.
* Slate Papers, vol. liv, p. 522.
O 2
10/3 THE DANISH DUCHIES
required that the Prussian law for military service should
be established in the Duchies ; that the army should take
the oath of allegiance to the Prussian King ; and that
Prussian troops should occupy the principal garrisons,
besides other arrangements tending to establish Prussian
supremacy in those territories. These terms were rejected
not only by Austria but also by the Duke of Augustenburg
and by the populations of the Duchies themselves, who,
with the support of the Federal Diet at Frankfort, now
placed themselves in opposition to the manifest designs of
Prussia. Thus the relations between Prussia and Austria,
as well as between Prussia and the majority in the Federal
Diet, became strained in the course of the year 1865,
a condition of affairs which was not improved by the
high-handed proceedings of the Prussian Commissioner in
Schleswig-Holstein, who expelled certain adherents of the
Augustenburg faction, and whose action in so doing was
stigmatized by his Austrian colleague as one of lawless
violence. War was, however, averted for the time being
by means of a Convention signed at Gastein (a favourite
summer resort of the sovereigns of Austria and Prussia)
on August 14, I865,1 wherein it was agreed that the co-
sovereignty of the two Powers in the Duchies conceded
by the Treaty of Peace of 1864 should be converted into
a geographical arrangement, under which Austria should
assume in Holstein all the rights so conceded, and Prussia
should assume all those rights in Schleswig. Further, it
contained a stipulation that it should be proposed to the
Germanic Diet to establish a German fleet, with Kiel as
a federal harbour for it ; that Kiel should be under the
command of Prussia, which should be entitled to erect
fortifications there, as well as to construct a North Sea
canal ; that Austria should cede to Prussia her rights
over Lauenburg against a money payment, and other
minor stipulations. Herein can be detected the trend of
1 Sec Mowat, Select Treaties, pp. 71-4.
DISPATCH OF EARL RUSSELL 197
Prussian policy and aspirations at that time, which were
to receive further development in due course.
Upon becoming aware of this Convention, Earl Russell,
the English Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, addressed
a circular dispatch1 to certain of the British ministers
abroad expressing regret at the course adopted. The
Treaty of the Danish Succession of 1852, his Lordship said,
had been completely set aside by Austria and Prussia,
two of the Powers who had signed it, notwithstanding
their assurances given in 1864.
It might have been expected that when Treaties were
thus annulled, the popular feeling of Germany, the wishes
of the Duchies themselves, and the opinions of the Diet
so explicitly put forth by Austria and Prussia in the
sittings of the Conference of London, would have been
recognized in their place. In this manner if an order of
Rights had been overthrown, another Title drawn from the
assent of the people would have been set up, and that
Title might have been received with respect and main-
tained with a prospect of permanence.
But all Rights, old and new, whether founded on the
solemn Compact of Sovereigns or on the clear expression
of the popular will, have been set at naught by the Con-
vention of Gastein, and the dominion of Force is the sole
power acknowledged and regarded.
Violence and conquest are the bases upon which alone
the Partitioning Powers found their agreement.
Her Majesty's Government deeply lament the disregard
thus shown to the principles of public right, and the
legitimate claims of a people to be heard as to the disposal
of their own destiny.
This instruction, his Lordship added, does not authorize
you to address observations on this subject to the Court
to which you are accredited, but is intended only to point
out when the opportunity shall present itself what is the
language you are expected to hold.
The further development of the Duchies question will
be set forth in connexion with the Treaty of Prague of
August 23, i866.a
1 September 14, 1865 ; Hertslet, vol. iii, p. 1645.
1 See pp. 241 ff.
198 THE DANISH DUCHIES
TREATY BETWEEN GREAT BRITAIN, AUSTRIA, FRANCE,
PRUSSIA, RUSSIA, AND SWEDEN AND NORWAY, ON
THE ONE PART, AND DENMARK ON THE OTHER PART,
RELATIVE TO THE SUCCESSION TO THE CROWN OF
DENMARK. SIGNED AT LONDON, STH MAY, I852.1
ARTICLE I. After having taken into serious considera-
tion the interests of his Monarchy, His Majesty the King
of Denmark, with the assent of His Royal Highness the
Hereditary Prince, and of his nearest cognates, entitled
to the Succession by the Royal Law of Denmark, as well
as in concert with His Majesty the Emperor of All the
Russias, Head of the elder Branch of the House of Holstein-
Gottorp, having declared his wish to regulate the order of
Succession in his dominions in such manner that, in default
of issue male in a direct line from King Frederick III of
Denmark, his Crown should devolve upon His Highness
the Prince Christian of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderbourg-
Glucksbourg, and upon the issue of the marriage of that
Prince with Her Highness the Princess Louisa of Schleswig-
Holstein-Sonderbourg-Gliicksbourg, born a Princess of
Hesse, by order of Primogeniture from Male to Male ; the
High Contracting Parties, appreciating the wisdom of the
views which have determined the eventual adoption of
that arrangement, engage by common consent, in case the
contemplated contingency should be realized, to acknow-
ledge in His Highness the Prince Christian of Schleswig-
Holstein-Sonderbourg-Glucksbourg, and his issue male in
the direct line by his marriage with the said Princess, the
Right of Succeeding to the whole of the Dominions now
united under the sceptre of His Majesty the King of
Denmark.
ARTICLE II. The High Contracting Parties, acknow-
ledging as permanent the principle of the Integrity of the
Danish Monarchy, engage to take into consideration the
further propositions which His Majesty the King of Den-
mark may deem it expedient to address to them in case
(which God forbid) the extinction of the issue male, in
the direct line, of His Highness the Prince Christian of
Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderbourg-Gliicksbourg, by his mar-
riage with Her Highness the Princess Louisa of Schleswig-
1 Translation as presented to Parliament, State Papers, vol. xlii,
p. 13 ; Hertslet, vol. ii. No. 230.
TREATY OF VIENNA, 1864 199
Hoist ein-Sonderbourg-Gliicksbourg, born a Princess of Hesse,
should become imminent.
ARTICLE III. It is expressly understood that the
reciprocal Rights and Obligations of His Majesty the King
of Denmark, and of the Germanic Confederation, concern-
ing the Duchies of Holstein and Lauenburg, Rights and
Obligations established by the Federal Act of 1815, and
by the existing Federal Right, shall not be affected by the
present Treaty.
ARTICLE IV. The High Contracting Parties reserve to
themselves to bring the present Treaty to the knowledge
of the other Powers, and to invite them to accede to it.
ARTICLE V. The present Treaty shall be ratified, and
the Ratifications shall be exchanged at London at the
expiration of 6 weeks, or sooner if possible.
In witness whereof, the respective Plenipotentiaries
have signed the same, and have affixed thereto the Seal of
their Arms.
Done at London, the 8th day of May, in the year of Our
Lord, 1852.
(L.S.) BILLE. (L.S.) MALMESBURY.
(L.S.) KUBECK.
(L.S.) A. WALEWSKI.
(L.S.) BUNSEN.
(L.S.) BRUNNOW.
(L.S.) REHAUSEN.
TREATY OF PEACE BETWEEN AUSTRIA, PRUSSIA, AND
DENMARK. SIGNED AT VIENNA, OCTOBER 30™,
1864.!
ARTICLE I. There shall be in the future peace and friend-
ship between their Majesties the King of Prussia and the
Emperor of Austria and his Majesty the King of Denmark
as well as between their heirs and successors, their respec-
tive states and subjects in perpetuity.
ARTICLE II. All the Treaties and Conventions con-
cluded before the war between the High Contracting
Parties are re-established in force in so far as they are not
abrogated or modified by the tenor of the present Treaty.
'Translation from State Papers, vol. liv, p. 522 ; Hertslet, vol. iii
No. 367. The text as given in Hertslet omits Articles VI to XXI.
200 THE DANISH DUCHIES
ARTICLE III. His Majesty the King of Denmark re-
nounces all his rights over the Duchies of Schleswig,
Holstein and Lauenburg, in favour of their Majesties the
King of Prussia and the Emperor of Austria, pledging
himself to recognise the dispositions which their said
Majesties shall make with regard to these Duchies.
ARTICLE IV. The cession of the Duchy of Schleswig
includes all the islands belonging to that Duchy as well
as the territory situated on terra firrna.
In order to simplify the delimitation and to put an end
to the inconveniences resulting from the situation of the
Jutland territory inclosed within the territory of Schleswig,
His Majesty the King of Denmark cedes to their Majesties
the King of Prussia and the Emperor of Austria the Jutland
possessions situated to the South of the line of southern
frontier of the district of Ribe, such as the Jutland territory
of Moegeltondern, the Island of Amrom, the Jutland
portions of the Islands of Foehr, Sylt, and Roemoe, &c.
On the other hand their Majesties the King of Prussia
and the Emperor of Austria agree that an equivalent
portion of Schleswig comprising, besides the Island of Aeroe,
territories which shall connect the above-mentioned dis-
trict of Ribe with the rest of Jutland, and which shall
correct the frontier line between Jutland and Schleswig
on the side of Kolding, shall be detached from the Duchy
of Schleswig and incorporated in the Kingdom of Denmark.
ARTICLE V. The new frontier between the Kingdom of
Denmark and the Duchy of Schleswig shall start from the
middle of the mouth of the bay of Hejlsminde on the
little Belt, and after crossing that bay shall follow the
present southern frontier of the parishes of Hejls, Vejstrup,
and Taps, this last as far as the water-course to the south
of Gejlbjerg and Branore, thence following that water-
course from its entry into the Fovs-Aa, along the southern
frontier of the parishes of Odis and Vandrup, and along
the Western frontier of this last place as far as K6nigs-Au
(Konge-Aa) to the North of Holte. From this point the
' Thalweg ' of the Konigs-Au (Konge-Aa) shall form the
frontier as far as the eastern boundary of the parish of
Hjortlund. Starting from that point the line shall follow
the same boundary and its continuation as far as the
projecting angle to the north of the village of Obekjar,
and afterwards the eastern frontier of that village as far
TREATY OF VIENNA, 1864 201
as the Gjels-Aa. From thence the eastern boundary of
the parish of Seem and the southern boundaries of the
parishes of Seem, Ribe, and Vester-Vedsted shall form the
new frontier, which, in the North Sea, shall pass at an
equal distance between the islands of Manoe and Roemoe.
As a result of this new delimitation, all the titles and
mixed rights, secular as well as spiritual, which have
existed up till now within the enclosures in the islands and
in the mixed parishes are mutually declared extinct.
Consequently the new sovereign power in each of the
territories separated by the new frontier shall enjoy in
this respect its full rights.
ARTICLE VI. An International Commission composed
of representatives of the High Contracting Parties shall
be appointed immediately after the exchange of ratifica-
tions of the present Treaty to carry out upon the spot
the marking of the new frontier in conformity with the
stipulations of the preceding Article. This Commission
will also have to divide between the Kingdom of Denmark
and the Duchy of Schleswig the expenses of constructing
the new high-road from Ribe to Tondern in proportion
to the extent of the respective territory through which it
passes.
Finally the same Commission shall preside over the
division of the landed and funded property which up till
now have belonged in common to districts or communes
separated by the new frontier.
ARTICLE VII. The dispositions of Articles XX, XXI
and XXII of the Treaty concluded between Austria and
Russia on the 3rd May iSi.5,1 which form an integral part
of the General Act of the Congress of Vienna, dispositions
relative to mixed proprietors, to the rights which they shall
exercise and to the local relations (rapports de voisinage) in
the properties cut by the frontiers, shall be applied to the
proprietors as well as to the properties which in Schleswig
and in Jutland happen to fall among the cases provided
for in the above-mentioned dispositions of the Acts of
the Congress of Vienna.
ARTICLE VIII. In order to achieve an equitable division
of the public debt of the Danish Monarchy in proportion
to the respective populations of the Kingdom and the
Duchies, and to obviate at the same time any insurmount-
1 Sec Stale Papers, vol. ii, p. 56.
202 THE DANISH DUCHIES
able difficulties which a detailed liquidation of the reciprocal
rights and claims would present, the High Contracting
Parties have fixed the share of the public debt of the
Danish Monarchy which shall be laid at the charge of the
Duchies, at the round sum of 29 million thalers (Danish
money).
ARTICLE IX. The part of the public debt of the Danish
Monarchy, which, in accordance with the preceding article,
shall fall to the charge of the Duchies, shall be paid, under
the guarantee of their Majesties the King of Prussia and
the Emperor of Austria, as a debt of the three above-
mentioned Duchies to the Kingdom of Denmark, in the
period of one year or sooner if possible, dating from the
definitive organization of the Duchies.
For the payment of this debt the Duchies may make
use, in whole or in part, of any of the following methods :
1. Payment in ready money (75 Prussian thalers = 100
thalers in Danish money) ;
2. Remittance to the Danish Treasury of non-redeemable
(non-remboursables) bonds bearing interest at 4 per
cent, and belonging to the interior debt of the
Danish Monarchy ;
3. Remittance to the Danish Treasury of new State
obligations to be issued by the Duchies, the value
of which shall be stated in Prussian thalers (at the
rate of 30 the pound) or in bank marks of Hamburg,
and which shall be paid off by means of a half-
yearly annuity of 3 per cent, of the original principal
of the debt, of which 2 per cent, shall represent the
interest of the debt due at each term, while the
remainder shall be paid by way of sinking fund
(amortissement).
The above-mentioned payment of the half-yearly annuity
of 3 per cent, shall be made not only by the public treasuries
of the Duchies but also by the banking-houses of Berlin
and Hamburg.
The obligations mentioned under 2 and 3 shall be
received by the Danish Treasury at their face value.
ARTICLE X. Up till the period when the Duchies shall
be definitively charged with the sum which they shall have
to pay in accordance with Article VIII of the present
Treaty, instead of their quota of the public debt of the
TREATY OF VIENNA, 1864 203
Danish Monarchy, they shall pay half-yearly 2 per cent,
of the said sum, that is 580,000 thalers (Danish money).
This payment shall be carried out in such a way that the
interest and the charges of the Danish debt which have
been met up till now by the public treasuries of the Duchies
shall be also henceforward paid by these same treasuries.
These payments shall be made each half-year, and in the
case where they would not amount to the above-mentioned
sum, the Duchies shall have to pay the remainder to the
Danish Treasury in ready money ; in the contrary case
the surplus shall be paid back to them also in ready
money.
The liquidation shall be carried out between Denmark
and the authorities charged with the superior administra-
tion of the Duchies after the method stipulated in the
present Article or every quarter in so far as on the one
side and on the other it shall be judged necessary. The
first payment shall have specially for its object all the
interest and charges of the public debt of the Danish
Monarchy paid after the 23rd December, 1863.
ARTICLE XL The sums representing the equivalent of the
so-called ' Holstein-Ploen ', the remainder of the indemnity
for the former possessions of the Duke of Augustenburg,
including the prior debt with which they are encumbered
and the ' domain ' obligations of Schleswig and Holstein,
shall be laid exclusively to the charge of the Duchies.
ARTICLE XII. The Governments of Prussia and of
Austria shall be reimbursed by the Duchies for the expenses
of the war.
ARTICLE XIII. His Majesty the King of Denmark
pledges himself to restore immediately after the exchange
of ratifications of the present Treaty, with their cargoes, all
the Prussian, Austrian, and German merchant vessels taken
during the war, as well as the cargoes belonging to Prussian,
Austrian, and German subjects seized on neutral vessels ;
as well as all the vessels seized by Denmark for military
reasons in the ceded Duchies.
The goods here mentioned shall be surrendered in the
condition in which they happen to be, bona fide, at the
time of their restitution.
In cases in which the goods to be surrendered no longer
exist, the value shall be handed over, and if they have lost
considerably in value since their seizure, the owners shall
204 THE DANISH DUCHIES
be indemnified in proportion. Further, it is recognized as
obligatory to indemnify the freighter and the crew of the
vessels and the owners of cargoes for all the expenses and
direct losses which shall be proved to have been caused by
the seizure of the ships, such as the harbour-dues or road-
stead-dues (Liegegelder), expenses of court, and expenses
incurred for the up-keep or the homeward journey of the
ships and their crews.
As for the ships which cannot actually be given back,
the indemnities to be granted shall be reckoned upon the
basis of the value which these ships bore at the time of
their capture. As regards the damaged cargoes or those
which no longer exist, the indemnity shall be fixed according
to the value which they would have had at the place of their
destination at the time when the vessel should have reached
it on a calculation of probabilities.
Their Majesties the King of Prussia and the Emperor of
Austria in a similar manner shall cause the restitution
of merchant ships taken by their troops or their ships of
war, as well as their cargoes, in so far as they belonged to
private persons.
If the restitution cannot actually be made, the indemnity
shall be fixed according to the principles indicated above.
Their said Majesties pledge themselves at the same time
to include in their statement of accounts the sum of the
contributions of war raised in ready money by their troops
in Jutland. This sum shall be deducted from the indem-
nities to be paid by Denmark according to the principles
established by the present Article.
Their Majesties the King of Prussia, the Emperor of
Austria, and the King of Denmark shall appoint a special
Commission, which shall fix the amount of the respective
indemnities and which shall assemble at Copenhagen not
later than 6 weeks after the exchange of ratifications of
the present Treaty.
This Commission shall endeavour to accomplish its task
in the space of 3 months. If, after that time, it has not
been able to agree upon all the claims presented to it,
those claims which have not been decided shall be sub-
mitted to the decision of an arbitrator. In this event
their Majesties the King of Prussia, the Emperor of Austria,
and his Majesty the King of Denmark shall come to an
understanding as to the choice of an arbitrator.
TREATY OF VIENNA, 1864 205
The indemnities shall be paid at the latest 4 weeks
afrer having been definitively fixed.
ARTICLE XIV. The Danish Government shall be charged
with the reimbursement of all the sums paid by the subjects
of the Duchies, by the communes, public establishments
and corporations into the Danish public treasuries as
pledge, deposit, or security.
Moreover the following shall be reimbursed to the
Duchies :
1. The deposits allocated to the redemption of the
Holstein treasury bonds (Kassenscheine) ;
2. The funds destined for the construction of prisons ;
3. The funds of insurances against fire ;
4. Deposit accounts (Caisse des depdts).
5. The capital arising from bequests belonging to com-
munes or public institutions in the Duchies.
6. The funds in cash (Kassenbehalte) arising from special
receipts of the Duchies and which were bona fide
their public cash at the time of the federal execution
and of the occupation of those countries.
An International Commission shall be charged with the
liquidation of the total of the above-mentioned sums,
deducting the expenses incurred in the special administra-
tion of the Duchies.
The collection of antiquities at Flensburg, which was
connected with the history of Schleswig, but which has
been in great part dispersed during the late events, shall
again be collected there with the help of the Danish Govern-
ment.
Furthermore, Danish subjects, communes, public estab-
lishments and corporations which shall have deposited
money as pledge, deposit, or security in the public treasuries
of the Duchies shall be accurately reimbursed by the new
Government.
ARTICLE XV. The pensions charged upon the special
budgets, either of the Kingdom of Denmark or of the
Duchies, shall continue to be paid by the respective coun-
tries. The recipients shall be at liberty to choose their
domicile either in the Kingdom or in the Duchies.
All the other pensions, civil as well as military (includ-
ing the pensions of the employees on the Civil List of his
late Majesty, King Frederick VII, of his late Royal High-
206 THE DANISH DUCHIES
ness Prince Ferdinand and of her late Royal Highness the
Landgrave Charlotte of Hesse, ne'e Princess of Denmark,
and the pensions which have been paid up till now by the
Secretary of Bounties (Secretariat des Graces) shall be
divided between the Kingdom and the Duchies according
to the proportion of their respective populations.
For this purpose it has been agreed to have a list drawn
up of all these pensions, to convert their value as life-
interest into capital, and invite all the recipients to declare
if, in the future, they desire to draw their pensions in the
Kingdom or in the Duchies.
Should it happen that as a result of these options the
proportion between the two quotas, that is to say, between
the share falling to the charge of the Duchies and that
remaining to the charge of the Kingdom, should not be in
conformity with the proportional principle of the respective
populations, the difference shall be paid by the party
which it concerns.
The pensions charged on the general fund for widows
and on the pension fund for military subalterns shall
continue to be paid as in the past, in so far as the
funds suffice. As regards the supplementary sums which
the State will have to pay to these funds, the Duchies
shall be responsible for a share of these supplementary
sums according to the proportion of their respective
populations.
Their share in the institution for life annuities and life
assurances founded in 1842 in Copenhagen, in which indi-
vidual natives of the Duchies have acquired rights, is
expressly reserved for them.
An International Commission composed of representatives
of the two parties shall meet at Copenhagen immediately
after the exchange of ratifications of the present Treaty,
to regulate in detail the stipulations of this Article.
ARTICLE XVI. The Royal Government of Denmark
shall be responsible for the payment of the following
appanages : of her Majesty the Dowager Queen Caroline
Amelia, of her Royal Highness the Hereditary Princess
Caroline, of her Royal Highness the Duchess Wilhelmina
Maria of Gliicksbourg, of her Highness the Duchess Caroline
Charlotte Marianne of Mecklenburg-Strelitz, of her High-
ness the Dowager Duchess Louise Caroline of Gliicksbourg,
of his Highness Prince Frederick of Hesse, of their Royal
TREATY OF VIENNA, 1864 . 207
Highnesses the Princesses Charlotte, Victoria and Amelia
of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderbourg-Augustenbourg.
The quota of this payment falling to the charge of the
Duchies according to the proportion of their populations,
shall be reimbursed to the Danish Government by that of
the Duchies.
The Commission mentioned in the preceding article shall
be also responsible for making the arrangements necessary
for the execution of the present Article.
ARTICLE XVII. The new Government of the Duchies
succeeds to the rights and obligations resulting from con-
tracts regularly stipulated by the administration of His
Majesty the King of Denmark for the objects of public
interest specially concerning the countries ceded.
It is understood that all the obligations resulting- from
contracts stipulated by the Danish Government in relation
to the war and to the federal execution are not included
in the preceding stipulation.
The new Government of the Duchies shall respect every
right legally acquired by individuals and civilians in the
Duchies.
In the case of disputed claims the tribunals shall investi-
gate affairs in this category.
ARTICLE XVIII. The original natives of the ceded
territories, being members of the Danish Army or Navy,
shall have the right of being liberated immediately from
military service and of returning to their homes.
It is understood that those among them who shall
remain in the service of his Majesty the King of Denmark,
shall not be in any way molested for that reason either in
regard to their persons or to their property.
The same rights and guarantees shall be severally
secured to civil employees, natives of Denmark or of the
Duchies, who shall manifest their intention of leaving the
posts they occupied either in the service of Denmark or
of the Duchies, or who shall prefer to retain their situations.
ARTICLE XIX. The subjects domiciled on the territories
ceded by the present Treaty shall, during the space of
6 years from the day of the exchange of ratifications of
the present Treaty and after making a previous declaration
to the competent authority, have the full and complete
power to export their movable property, free of duty, and
to withdraw with their families into the States of his
208 THE DANISH DUCHIES
•
Danish Majesty, in which case they shall retain their status
as Danish subjects. They shall be free to keep their real
estate situated on ceded territory.
The same facilities are granted reciprocally to Danish
subjects and to natives of the ceded territories who are
settled in the States of his Majesty the King of Denmark.
The subjects who shall make use of the facilities here
stated shall not be subjected, as a result of their choice,
to any molestation on the one part or on the other, either
in regard to their persons or in regard to their property
situated in the respective states.
The above-mentioned delay of 6 years shall apply also
to the native subjects of the Kingdom of Denmark as well
as to those of the ceded territories who, at the time of the
exchange of ratifications of the present Treaty, shall find
themselves to be outside the territory of the Kingdom of
Denmark or of the Duchies. Their declaration can be
received by the nearest Danish mission or by the superior
authority of any province of the Kingdom or of the Duchies.
The rights of citizenship, not only in the Kingdom of
Denmark but also in the Duchies, are preserved for all
individuals who hold them at the time of the exchange
of ratifications of the present Treaty.
ARTICLE XX. The deeds of property, documents of the
administration and civil justice, concerning the ceded
territory which are in the archives of the Kingdom of
Denmark shall be dispatched to the Commissioners of the
new Government of the Duchies as soon as possible.
Similarly, all those portions of the archives of Copenhagen
which have belonged to the ceded Duchies and have been
extracted from their archives shall be delivered to them
with the rolls and registers relative to them.
The Danish Government and the new Government of
the Duchies pledge themselves reciprocally to produce, on
the request of the superior administrative authorities, all
the documents and information relative to matters concern-
ing alike Denmark and the Duchies.
ARTICLE XXI. The commerce and navigation of Den-
mark and the ceded Duchies shall reciprocally in both
countries enjoy the rights and privileges of the most
favoured nation, until special Treaties shall be drawn up
to regulate these matters.
The exemptions and facilities with regard to the rights
TREATY OF VIENNA, 1864 209
of transit which in virtue of Article II of the Treaty of
March 14, 1857,1 have been granted for merchandise passing
along the roads and canals which connect or will connect
the Sea of Ford with the Baltic Sea shall be applicable for
merchandise crossing the Kingdom .and the Duchies by
any means of communication whatsoever.
ARTICLE XXII. The evacuation of Jutland by the allied
troops shall be effected with the shortest possible delay,
at the latest in the space of 3 weeks after the exchange of
ratifications of the present Treaty.
The special dispositions relative to the evacuation are
contained in a Protocol annexed to the present Treaty.2
ARTICLE XXIII. In order to contribute to the utmost
to the pacification of the inhabitants, the High Contracting
Parties declare and promise that any individual implicated
at the time in recent events, of whatever class or condition
he may be, shall not be pursued, molested, or disturbed
in regard to his person or his property by reason of his
conduct or of his political opinions.
ARTICLE XXIV. The present Treaty shall be ratified
and its ratifications shall be exchanged at Vienna within
the space of 3 weeks or sooner if possible.
In testimony whereof the respective Plenipotentiaries
have signed it and have affixed thereto the seal of their
arms.
Done at Vienna the 30th day of the month of October,
in the year of Our Lord 1864.
(L.S.) QUAADE. (L.S.) WERTHER.
(L.S.) KAUFFMANN. (L.S.) BALAN.
(L.S.) RECHBERG.
(L.S.) BRENNER.
1 See State Papers, vol. xlvii, p. 24.
* For Protocol, see State Papers, vol. liv, p. 531.
1003
CHAPTER VII
THE UNION OF ITALY
Vienna Congress Treaty and Italy — Swiss Neutrality — Chablaia
and Faucigny — Italy in the Eighteenth Century — Napoleonic
Period — Movements of 1848 and 1849 — War of 1859 — Pre-
liminaries of Villafranca — Congress proposed — Plebiscites in
the Duchies — Peace of Zurich — Failure of proposal for Congress
— Lord John Russell's dispatch — Proposed Italian Confedera-
tion — The Duchies — Sardinian Annexations — Cession of Savoy —
— Annexation of Naples — Kingdom of Italy — War of 1 866 —
Mediation of France — Treaty of Prague — Treaty of Vienna ( 1 866)
— Plebiscite in Venetia — Rome as capital of Italy.
Texts .> The Treaty of Zurich (1859) — The Treaty of Vienna, 1866.
THE territories, with their boundaries, appertaining to
Sardinia and to Austria, were indicated in Articles LXXXV
onwards of the Congress Treaty of Vienna of 1815 (see
p. 79). Amongst others, the States which constituted the
former Republic of Genoa were assigned to Sardinia, and
to Austria the territories of Venetia and Lombardy.
The neutrality of Switzerland was guaranteed by the
eight Powers in a Declaration signed at Vienna on March 20,
1815. This Declaration formed Annex XI A to the Vienna
Congress Treaty. The Swiss Confederation accepted this
Declaration by an Act signed at Zurich May 27, 1815,
forming Annex XI B to that Treaty. Article XCII of the
Congress Treaty declared that the Provinces of Chablais
and Faucigny and the territory of Savoy to the north of
Ugine, belonging to the King of Sardinia, should form
part of the neutrality of Switzerland as so guaranteed.
Article CIII restored territories to the Holy See, and
Article CIV restored King Ferdinand IV and his heirs to
the throne of Naples and acknowledged him as King of
the Two Sicilies.
THE
UN ION OF ITALY
I859-7O
Piedmont Santinis in April
Aildtd in November I8S9
AJdc.il in March I860
Addtd October November if 60
Added October IB66
Addeo October 1870
Lost March IB6O
istricts claimut ty Italy IBIt
P 2
212 THE UNION OF ITALY
The condition of Italy in the eighteenth century may be
briefly summed up. Her people were sunk in apathy
under the rule of foreign princes, who, with the exception
perhaps of the Habsburg line in Tuscany, entertained
a complete disregard for their welfare. In Savoy and
Piedmont there was a semblance of national life, because
the rulers were native and governed with commendable
uprightness : territorial expansion was their constant
ambition. Following on the war of the Spanish Succession,
Austria (1713) had succeeded to the Spanish dominions in
Italy, and though in 1738 she surrendered the Two Sicilies
to the Spanish Bourbon line, she remained the dominant
power, controlling the smaller States. In South Italy
misgovernment produced a constant ferment of discontent.
The Papal States, under clerical government, were in
a deplorable condition, and, as in South Italy, the well-
being of the people was neglected. It was the Napoleonic
invasions which first stirred the lethargic mass into con-
sciousness of a common life. In 1796 the French Army
first entered Italy, driving the Austrians before them,
and establishing republics or annexing territory to France.
Napoleon's second invasion in 1800 resulted in the defeat
of the Austrians, and in due course led to his own acquisi-
tion of the Crown of Italy.
After the fall of Napoleon came the Congress of Vienna,
and the territorial and constitutional arrangements above
alluded to. Nevertheless matters did not greatly mend.
The former rulers resumed ascendancy, the old privileges
of nobles and clergy were restored, with the old abuses ;
but Italy, profiting by past experience, no longer submitted
tamely. Revolutions recurred at intervals, both in Northern
and Southern Italy as well as in the Papal States. In 1848,
at a time of general unrest in Europe, Lombardy and Venice
revolted, and being supported by Sardinia, war with
Austria ensued. The latter was eventually victorious, and
on August 6, 1849, a Treaty of Peace was concluded at
WAR OF 1859 2I3
Milan between Austria and Sardinia1 (the Dukes of
Modena and Parma afterwards acceding to it), wherein
the boundaries of Sardinia were declared to be those speci-
fied in Article LXXXV of the Congress Treaty of Vienna.
No prospect of success to the efforts of Sardinia to shake
off the Austrian yoke manifested itself until 1858, when
Sardinia and France, each animated by interests of her
own, approached the question in concert, and it became
manifest in the early days of 1859 that war between those
two Powers and Austria was imminent.
The Swiss Government, while declaring their neutrality
in the event of war, were much exercised in mind over the
question whether the passage of French troops into Pied-
mont by the Victor Emmanuel Railway, which passed
through a portion of the neutral territory, would be deemed
to be a breach of the neutrality declared by the Congress
Treaty of 1815. They held, however, that the negotiators
of that treaty did not intend to cut off communication
with Piedmont, otherwise they would have included in
the neutral territory the then existing road to Chambery.
They therefore decided to raise no obstacle to the use of
the railway by French troops in transit.2 But the ques-
tion did not assume an acute form. Proposals were then
made, originating with Russia, and supported by Great
Britain, for assembling a Congress of the Powers to consider
the relations between Austria and Sardinia with a view
to averting war, the questions for discussion being the
evacuation of the Papal States by the armies of Austria
and France, the reform of the Papal and other Govern-
ments, the safeguarding of Sardinia against invasion by
Austria, and the substitution of a new arrangement for
ensuring the internal security of the smaller States, in lieu
of the Austrian Treaties of 1847.* It was suggested that
this arrangement should take the form of a confederation
1 State Papers, vol. xxxviii, p. 1239.
1 Ibid., vol. Ivii, pp. 170-2. * Ibid., vol. Ivii, pp. 176 ff.
214 THE UNION OF ITALY
of the smaller Italian States. The treaties here alluded
to were the Treaty of Offensive and Defensive Alliance
between Austria and Modena of December 24, 1847, for
mutual assistance in case of attack, and a similar treaty
between Austria and Parma of February 4, I848.1 But so
many difficulties arose in the course of the negotiations as to
what States were to be admitted and what points discussed,
that the idea of settling the questions at issue by means
of a Congress was finally abandoned ; and Austria, after
addressing an ultimatum to Sardinia requiring her to
disarm, declared war against that Power on April 28,
i859.2 The Grand Duke of Tuscany and the Duke of
Modena thereupon abandoned their respective Duchies
and joined the Austrian forces. The Emperor of Austria's
manifesto declaring war laid all the blame upon Sardinia,
who, it was stated, notwithstanding the moderation of
Austria in not annexing territory on the conclusion of
Peace in 1849, had ever since agitated by all the expedients
of perfidy against the peace and welfare of the Lombardo-
Venetian Kingdom. The Italian proclamation announcing
war with Austria, dated April 29, 1859,* accused Austria
of refusing the proposed Congress and of attacking Piedmont
because she had advocated the cause of the Italians in the
Councils of Europe : Austria had thus violently broken
the treaties which she had never respected. On May 3,
France declared war against Austria.
The French and Sardinian armies thereupon invaded
Lombardy, defeated the Austrians at Magenta (June 4,
1859), and subsequently at Solferino (June 24, 1859).
France, mindful of the dangers which threatened in the
event of a continuance of the war, with the reluctant
acquiescence of Sardinia, then signed Preliminary Articles
of Peace with Austria at Villafranca on July u, 1859.*
1 Slate Papers, vol. xxxvi, pp. 1169-71.
* Ibid., vol. Ivii, p. 228. » Ibid., vol. Ivii, p. 236.
« Ibid., vol. xlix, p. 362.
PRELIMINARIES OF VILLAFRANCA 215
These Preliminaries declared that the two sovereigns
favoured the creation of an Italian Confederation under
the honorary presidency of the Holy Father ; that Austria
ceded to France her rights over Lombardy ; that France
should present the ceded territory to Sardinia ; that
Venetia should form part of the Italian Confederation,
whilst remaining subject to the Crown of Austria ; that
the Grand Duke of Tuscany and the Duke of Modena
should return to their States ; and that the Pope should
be requested to introduce reforms in his territories.
A definitive Peace was signed at Zurich on November 10,
1859. There were in fact three treaties signed on that
day, one between Austria and France, one between France
and Sardinia, and one between Austria, France, and
Sardinia conjointly.1 The Plenipotentiaries who negotiated
these treaties met at Zurich in August 1859.
Before examining the provisions of these treaties it will
be convenient to detail briefly the international discussions
which were entered upon immediately on the signature
of the preliminaries of peace, and which were continued
until the month of January i86o.2
As soon as the Preliminaries of Villafranca had been
signed, Great Britain, always mindful of the true interests
of Italy and also, no doubt, of her own interest in the
preservation of peace in Europe, inquired of the British
Ambassador at Paris what were the arrangements therein
made, what arrangements remained to be considered, and
what means were in contemplation for carrying the pro-
posed arrangements into effect. Lord Cowley, the Ambas-
sador in question, furnished the substance of the Prelimi-
naries, as given above. He stated that the details for
carrying them into effect must, in the opinion of the French
Government, emanate from a congress or conference of
the Powers. The French Government were further of
1 State Papers, vol. xlvii, pp. 364, 371, 377.
' Ibid., vol. xlix, pp. 87-361.
216 THE UNION OF ITALY
opinion that it should be optional for all the Italian sove-
reigns to join or not to join the proposed Confederation,
that the French troops should leave Rome on the formation
of the Confederation, and that neither Austrian nor French
troops should occupy the Legations.1
Great Britain was opposed to the idea of a Confedera-
tion such as. was suggested, on the ground that it would
rivet more firmly the preponderance of Austria which it
was the object of the late war to put an end to.2 She was
also opposed to the employment of force for the re-estab-
lishment of the former rulers of Tuscany, Modena, &c.,
upon their respective thrones. The Pope was opposed to
reforms which included lay government in the Legations,
although His Holiness offered reforms which, on examina-
tion, were deemed to be of little value. Tuscany was
opposed to the return of the Grand Ducal family to the
throne, which could only be maintained by the assistance
of foreign bayonets. Russia declined to take the initiative
in calling together a congress, but would not refuse to
take part in it provided that both England and Prussia
did so. Other Powers also entertained special views on
particular points.
On August 16, 1859, the Tuscan Assembly voted unani-
mously that they could neither recall nor receive the Austrian
dynasty of Lorraine to reign again in Tuscany. On the
2oth of the same month they voted, also unanimously, in
favour of annexing the Grand Duchy to Piedmont under
the sceptre of King Victor Emmanuel.
In the same way, the National Assembly of Modena
voted unanimously on August 20, 1859, that the Duke of
Modena was deposed from the throne of that Duchy and
that no member of the House of Lorraine could be received
to reign over it ; and on the following day they voted,
1 The Legations were the twenty administrative divisions of the
Papal States, governed by Legates.
3 An interesting dispatch by Lord John Russell. See State Papers,
vol. xlix, p. no.
PEACE OF ZURICH 217
also unanimously, the annexation of that Duchy to Pied-
mont. The Duchy of Parma adopted a similar course. In
the meantime temporary governments had been established
in those Duchies, following on what was termed the deser-
tion of their territories by their rulers to join the armies
of their enemies. Romagna (Papal State) also set up a
temporary government.
All this time the negotiations between France and
Austria at Zurich for the conclusion of a definitive peace
were being slowly and laboriously carried on in the face
of the difficulties created by the divergent views of the
Powers in connexion with the proposed congress and by
the action of the Italian States.
At length, before any final decision was arrived at con-
cerning the meeting of the congress (though its acceptance
was confidently expected), the three treaties above speci-
fied were signed at Zurich on November 10, 1859, an(^ tne
ratifications of them were exchanged on the 2ist of that
month. In their main provisions these treaties were
a mere reproduction of the Preliminaries of Villafranca.
The preamble of the Treaty between Austria and France
declared its object to be to put an end to the calamities
of war and to prevent the recurrence of the complications
which gave rise to it by assisting to place on solid and
durable bases the internal and external independence of
Italy. Article IV of the treaty provided for the cession
of Lombardy by Austria to France, except the fortresses
of Peschiera and Mantua, &c., and described the new
frontiers. Article V recorded the intention of France to
band over to Sardinia the territory thus ceded. By
Article XVIII the contracting parties engaged to make
every effort to encourage the creation of a Confederation
amongst the Italian States under the honorary presidency
of the Pope; Venetia, whilst remaining subject to the
Crown of Austria, was to form one of the States of the Con-
federation. Article XX declared that France and Austria
2i8 THE UNION OF ITALY
would unite their efforts to obtain from the Pope that the
necessity of introducing indispensable reforms should be
taken into serious consideration. All the foregoing stipula-
tions were also contained in the Preliminaries of Villaf ranca.
With regard to the restoration of the Grand Duke of
Tuscany and the Duke of Modena, the idea was rather
differently expressed : the Preliminaries said, ' The Grand
Duke of Tuscany and the Duke of Modena return to their
States, granting a general Amnesty '; — the Treaty (Article
XIX) said, ' As the Territorial delimitations of the Inde-
pendent States of Italy who took no part in the late war
can be changed only with the sanction of the Powers who
presided at their formation and recognized their existence,
the Rights of the Grand Duke of Tuscany, of the Duke of
Modena and of the Duke of Parma are expressly reserved
for the consideration of the High Contracting Parties '.
The remaining Articles of the Treaty had reference to
prisoners of war, restoration of certain captured vessels,
portions of public debt and contracts to be taken over
by Lombardy, and other financial arrangements, railways,
freedom of inhabitants to remove from ceded territory,
military and civil servants, archives, religious societies,
non-molestation of individuals in person or property, and
such-like.
The Treaty between France and Sardinia (Article I)
recited Article IV of the above treaty and transferred to
Sardinia the rights over Lombardy acquired by France
under that Article. By Article II Sardinia accepted those
rights and the charges and conditions consequent thereupon
as indicated, which were also recited in that Article (Articles
VII to XVI of the Franco- Austrian Treaty).
The Treaty between Austria, France, and Sardinia
followed somewhat on the lines of the first Treaty (Austria
and France), with the exception of the stipulations respect-
ing the proposed Italian Confederation, the reinstatement
of the Dukes and the reforms to be required of the Pope,
PROPOSED CONGRESS A FAILURE 219
concerning which the treaty is silent ; and with the addi-
tion of stipulations for the renewal of treaties between
Austria and Sardinia subject to revision and their extension
to the ceded territories, the free navigation of the Lake of
Garda and the River Po, the conclusion of a convention
for the prevention of smuggling, and kindred matters as
between Austria and Sardinia.
It is to be observed that Sardinia was in no way bound
by or concerned in the provisions relating to the establish-
ment of an Italian Confederation, the restoration of the
Grand Duke of Tuscany and the Dukes of Modena and
Parma, or the introduction of reforms in the Papal States,
arranged for in the Preliminaries of Villafranca and in
the Franco-Austrian Treaty of Zurich. Those stipulations
affected France and Austria alone.
It is evident that the negotiations at Zurich contemplated
the submission of these several questions to a congress of
the Great Powers, but this congress never took place.
Invitations to attend it were issued by France and Austria,
Paris was accepted as the seat of its deliberations, and the
date of its assembling was approximately fixed for January
1860. Austria and the Pope, however, intervened in such
a manner as to render further action by the Powers impos-
sible. The circumstances under which this occurred are
thus set forth in a dispatch of January i, 1860, from the
British Ambassador at Paris to Lord John Russell * :
' Your Lordship will have been informed . . . that the
projected meeting of the Congress on Italian affairs has
been indefinitely postponed. A pamphlet published in
Paris under the title of " Le Pape et le Congres " which
has created too much stir in the political world not to have
attracted your Lordship's attention, is the indirect cause
of the postponement. The Austrian Government, it appears,
requires an engagement on the part of the French Govern-
ment neither to bring before the Congress themselves the
measures of which the pamphlet is the advocate, nor to
1 Stale Papers, vol. xlix, p. 361.
220 THE UNION OF ITALY
support them if brought forward by others. The French
Government hesitate at entering into any such engage-
ment, and Austria, in consequence, declines appearing at
the Congress — that is, she declares that she will not assist
at a Congress in which the Pope is not represented ; and
it would seem that, although nothing official has as yet
been received from Rome, the intention of the Pope is to
require the engagement to which I have alluded above
before he will send a Plenipotentiary to Paris.'
The proposal for a congress therefore came to nothing.
It has been related above, in connexion with the
Treaty of Peace signed at Zurich between Austria and
France on November 10, 1859, h°w & was t*16 object of
that treaty (amongst other things) to establish an Italian
Confederation and to provide for the return of the Austrian
Dukes to their territories in Tuscany, Modena, and Parma
respectively, and how the congress which was to have
regularized these proposals proved abortive.
As Sardinia was not a party to these arrangements, and
as they did not materialize by means of a congress or
otherwise, this Power was left with a more or less free
hand in the disposal of her destinies.
In the course of the exchange of views which continued
to take place between the Powers, it was manifested that
England and France were opposed to the principle of the
employment of force in carrying out the proposals of
Zurich if those proposals were antagonistic to the wishes
of the populations concerned ; and the French Govern-
ment did not fail to impress upon that of Austria the fact
that such a principle was contrary to French policy and
practice.1 In the early months of 1860, therefore, votes
by universal suffrage were obtained, in favour of annexa-
tion to Sardinia, in the provinces of Emilia — Bologna,
Ferrara, Forli, Massa and Carrara, Modena, Parma,
Piacenza, Ravenna and Reggio — which were States of the
Church, and in Tuscany. Acting in accordance with the
» January 31, 1860. State Papers, vol. 1, p. 542.
ANNEXATIONS 221
will of the people thus declared, the King of Sardinia, by
Decrees dated the i8th and 22nd March, i860,1 annexed
those territories to his dominions.
The Duke of Modena protested (March 22) against the
annexation of Modena ; the Grand Duke of Tuscany pro-
tested (March 24) against the annexation of Tuscany ;
the Duchess Regent of Parma protested (March 28) against
the annexation of Parma 2 ; and the Pope protested
(March 24) against the annexation of the Romagna, &c.3
Already, before these events had taken place, hints had
been thrown out by France in the diplomatic correspon-
dence, and comments had even appeared in the public press
of that country, to the effect that the creation of a strong
Italian State would constitute a grave danger to France
in the existing position of her frontiers, and that a rectifica-
tion of her boundaries in the direction of Savoy would
become essential in order to safeguard her from attack.
The idea of the cession of Savoy and Nice to France was
in fact discussed by France and Sardinia before the out-
break of the war in 1859, when it was hoped that Venetia
would be acquired by Sardinia. When this failed, the idea
was abandoned, but resuscitated later on. When rumours
of the proposed cession began to assume a more concrete
form, the British Government warned France of the
dangers which were to be apprehended should a serious
attempt be made to bring about the annexation of Savoy
and Nice to France.4 Nevertheless the scheme matured,
and early in March 1860, France addressed a long reasoned
statement to Great Britain and other Powers 5 setting
forth the necessity for the proposed action and expressing
the hope that her motives would be appreciated. Great
Britain did not altogether appreciate them, but her reply
1 Stale Papers, vol. Ivii, p. 1029.
1 Ibid., vol. Ivii, pp. 1030, 1033, 1037.
3 Hertslet, Map of Europe by Treaty, p. 1422.
' See State Papers, vol. 1, pp. 457, 474, 604.
6 State Papers, vol. 1, p. 600.
222 THE UNION OF ITALY
to the French statement, though controverting its argu-
ments and assertions, did not actually amount to a protest,
a fact which the French Government were not slow in
making a note of. Thus, on March 24, 1860, in the midst
of the Sardinian annexations and the protests of the
Dukes and of the Pope, a treaty was concluded at Turin
between France and Sardinia for the annexation of Savoy
and Nice to France.1 The second article of this treaty
declared that as Sardinia could only transfer the neutra-
lized parts of Savoy on the conditions upon which she
herself possessed them, it devolved upon the Emperor of
the French to come to an understanding with the Vienna
Congress Powers and with Switzerland on the subject.
Switzerland, of course, protested against the cession, and
appealed to the neutrality articles of the Vienna Congress
Treaty. A conference was then proposed for the purpose
of reconciling Article XCII of the Congress Treaty with
Article II of the Treaty of Turin ; the conference did not,
however, take place, but in due course the new boundaries
between France and Sardinia were established.
Towards the end of 1860 the King of Sardinia entered
Naples (the way having been paved for him by Garibaldi),
and, annexation having been voted by plebiscite, assumed
the title of King. On March 17, 1861, His Majesty, by a law
passed by the Sardinian Chambers, assumed the title of
King of Italy.
The next serious push in the direction of the unification
of the Italian peninsula was made in 1866, when Italy
took advantage of the strained relations then existing
between Austria and Prussia (dealt with in another place in
connexion with the Treaty of Prague, pp. 241-51) to make a
further effort for the emancipation of Venetia from Austria.
Three burning questions at that time agitated Europe :
the Venetian question as between Austria and Italy, the
Danish Duchies question as between Austria and Prussia,
1 State Papers, vol. 1, p. 412.
WAR OF 1866 223
and the question of the reform of the Germanic Confedera-
tion as between Austria, Prussia, and other German States.
The armies of the several countries concerned were placed
upon a war footing, and hostilities appeared imminent.
An attempt was made by Great Britain, France, and
Russia to convene a conference to discuss the questions at
issue in the hope of averting war. Austria alone refused
the conference, that is to say she attached to her accept-
ance of it a condition that no questions of territorial
aggrandizement should therein be raised. This put an end
to all discussion on the principal points in dispute, and
once more, therefore, the idea of arriving at a peaceful
solution of the existing difficulties had to be abandoned.
Italy entered into an alliance with Prussia in May 1866,
and on the collapse of the proposal for a conference in the
following month war was the inevitable and almost immedi-
ate result. On June 17 an Austrian manifesto of war with
Prussia and Italy was issued ; on the i8th a Prussian
manifesto of war with Austria ; and on the igth and 2oth
an Italian manifesto and declaration of war with Austria.1
The war was of short duration. Although Austria gained
some successes against the Italian forces both on land and
at sea, she was entirely defeated by the Prussians, and an
opening was afforded to the Emperor of the French to
step in as mediator between the contending parties. France
obtained from Austria an undertaking to cede to her the
Lombardo- Venetian Kingdom, to be by her handed over
to Italy ; and on July 14, 1866, France submitted to
Austria and Prussia a draft of Preliminaries of Peace for
their consideration and adoption. The first stipulation of
this draft was that the integrity of the Austrian Empire,
with the exception of Venetia, should be maintained.2
Preliminaries on the lines of the French proposal were
signed at Nikolsburg on July 26, 1866, between Prussia
1 State Papers, vol. Ixiii, pp. 580, 584, 585, 587.
* De Clercq, Recueil des Traites de la France, vol. ix, p. 599.
224 THE UNION OF ITALY
and Austria, Prussia undertaking to obtain the concur-
rence of Italy in them ' as soon as the Venetian Kingdom
should have been put at the disposal of the King of Italy
by a Declaration of His Majesty the Emperor of the French '.
On August ii the Emperor of the French addressed
a letter to the King of Italy in which the following passage
occurred : ' Your Majesty is aware that I accepted the
offer of Venetia in order to preserve her from devastation
and to prevent a useless effusion of blood. My object
always was to restore her to herself, to the end that Italy
should be free from the Alps to the Adriatic. Mistress of
her destinies, Venetia will soon be in a position, by means
of universal suffrage, to give expression to her desires.
Your Majesty will acknowledge that under these circum-
stances the action of France has once more been exercised
in the interests of humanity and the independence of the
populations.' 1
The somewhat unusual mode of procedure above indi-
cated was probably adopted as a compromise to meet the
unwillingness of Austria to cede Venetia directly to Italy
and the reluctance of Italy to accept the territory as a gift
from France.
By Article II of the Treaty of Prague of August 23, 1866
(the Peace between Austria and Prussia), it was recorded
that the Emperor of the French had officially declared
through his Ambassador at Berlin : ' that in so far as regards
the Government of the Emperor, Venetia is secured to
Italy, to be made over to her at the peace ' ; and conse-
quently that the Emperor of Austria acceded on his part
to that declaration, and gave his consent to the union
of the Lombardo-Venetian Kingdom with the Kingdom
of Italy.2
The Treaty of Peace between Austria and Italy was
signed at Vienna on October 3, i866.3
1 De Clercq, vol. ix, p. 618. * See below, p. 248.
» State Papers, vol. Ivi, p. 700.
TREATY OF VIENNA, 1866 225
The preamble of this treaty declared that Austria had
ceded the Lombardo- Venetian Kingdom to the Emperor
of the French, who had recorded his willingness to recognize
its union with Italy provided that the populations, being
consulted, consented thereto ; the contracting parties had
therefore agreed to the following Articles.
Then came the usual peace and friendship Article and that
for the mutual delivery of prisoners of war. Articles III
and IV declared the consent of Austria to the union of the
Lombardo- Venetian Kingdom to Italy ; the boundaries
to be the actual administrative confines of the ceded
territory, to be traced by a military commission. There-
upon followed stipulations for evacuation of ceded territory,
responsibility for certain debts, payments to Austria on
account of loan of 1854, and for the price of non-transport-
able war material, the taking over of Austrian contracts,
railway concessions, &c., the mutual reimbursement of
monies paid into public banks, the administrative separa-
tion of Venetian and Austrian railways, and so forth.
Article XIII provided for the extension of railways to unite
the Italian and Austrian networks. Article XIV empowered
inhabitants on either side to remove, free from molestation,
from or into the respective territories with their movable
property, while retaining their immovable property.
Article XV onwards dealt with persons in the military or
civil services, giving the option of remaining ; with the pay-
ment of pensions ; with the delivery of judicial, political, and
historical documents ; with customs and trade facilities on
the frontiers ; with the renewal of treaties, &c. Article XXII
restored to Princes and Princesses of the House of Austria
their personal and real estates, reserving, nevertheless, all
the rights of the State and of individuals to be prosecuted
by legal means. Article XXIII granted a full and entire
amnesty for all individuals compromised on account of
political events in the past.
These were the principal stipulations of the treaty, to
1003
226 THE UNION OF ITALY
which an additional Article was appended fixing the
periods of payments to be made by Italy in respect of the
Monte-Lombardo debt and in respect of war material.
The ratifications of the treaty were exchanged at Vienna
on October 12, 1866.
On the igth of the same month a ' Proces- verbal ' was
drawn up at Venice and signed by the French Commissioner
and other members of the commission, whereby Venetia
was delivered to the Venetians ' in order that the popula-
tions, mistresses of their destinies, might express freely,
by universal suffrage, their wishes on the subject of the
annexation of Venetia to the Kingdom of Italy '.*
The vote above alluded to was taken on October 21 and 22,
1866, and resulted almost unanimously in favour of annexa-
tion to Italy. On November 4 following, an Italian decree
was promulgated annexing Venetia to the Kingdom of
Italy.
It may here be recorded in conclusion that the seat of
the Italian Government and Court (which had been trans-
ferred from Turin to Florence in 1865) was, after the final
withdrawal of the French troops from Rome in 1870,
removed to that capital in the year 1871.
TREATY OF PEACE BETWEEN AUSTRIA, FRANCE, AND
SARDINIA. SIGNED AT ZURICH, IOTH NOVEMBER,
i859-2
(Translation as presented to Parliament.)
ARTICLE I. There shall be from the date of the day of
the exchange of the Ratifications of the present Treaty,
Peace and Amity between His Majesty the Emperor of
Austria and His Majesty the King of Sardinia, their heirs
and successors, their respective States and subjects, in
perpetuity.
ARTICLE II. The Austrian and Sardinian Prisoners of
War shall be immediately returned on either part.
1 De Clercq, vol. ix, p. 619.
* French version in State Papers, vol. xl, p. 377.
TREATY OF ZURICH, 1859 227
ARTICLE III. In pursuance of the Territorial Cessions
stipulated in the Treaties concluded this day between His
Majesty the Emperor of Austria and His Majesty the
Emperor of the French, on one side, and His Majesty the
Emperor of the French and His Majesty the King of
Sardinia on the other, the Delimitation between the Italian
Provinces of Austria and Sardinia shall in future be as
follows :
The Frontier, starting from the Southern Boundary of
the Tyrol, on the Lake de Garda, will follow the middle
of the Lake as far as the height of Bardolino and Manerba,
whence it will meet, in a straight line, the point where the
circle of defence of the Fortress of Peschiera intersects the
Lake of Garda.
It will follow the circumference of this circle, the radius
of which, reckoned from the centre of the Fortress, is fixed
at 3,500 metres, plus the distance from the said centre to
the glacis of the most advanced Fort. From the point of
intersection of the circumference thus designated with the
Mincio, the Frontier will follow the thalweg of the river
as far as Le Grazie ; will stretch from Le Grazie, in a straight
line, to Scorzarolo ; will follow the thalweg of the Po as
far as Luzzara, beyond which point no change is made in
the Boundaries such as they existed before the War.
A Military Commission, appointed by the High Con-
tracting Parties, will be charged with the duty of tracing
the Boundary with the least possible delay.
ARTICLE IV. The Territories still occupied in virtue of
the Armistice of the 8th of July last shall be reciprocally
evacuated by the Austrian and Sardinian Troops, who shall
immediately retire beyond the Frontiers determined by
the preceding Article.
ARTICLE V. The Government of His Majesty the King
of Sardinia shall take upon itself three-fifths of the Debt
of the Monte Lombardo-Veneto.
It shall equally undertake a portion of the National Loan
of 1854, fixed between the High Contracting Parties at
40,000,000 florins, ' monnaie de Convention '.
ARTICLE VI. With regard to the 40,000,000 florins
stipulated in the preceding Article, the Government of
His Majesty the Emperor of the French renews the engage-
ment which it has entered into with the Government of
His Majesty the Emperor of Austria, to effect the Payment
Q2
228 THE UNION OF ITALY
of it according to the manner determined in the Additional
Article to the Treaty signed this day between the two
High Contracting Powers.
On the other hand, the Government of His Majesty the
King of Sardinia puts again on record the engagement
which it has contracted by the Treaty likewise signed
to-day between Sardinia and France, to reimburse this
sum to the Government of His Majesty the Emperor of
the French, according to the manner stipulated in Article III
of the said Treaty.
ARTICLE VII. A Commission, composed of Delegates of
the High Contracting Parties, will be immediately formed,
in order to proceed to the liquidation of the Monte Lom-
bardo- Venetian Debt. The Division of the Debts and
Credits of this establishment will be effected on the basis
of three-fifths for Sardinia, and two-fifths for Austria.
Of the Assets of the Sinking Fund of the Monte and its
Deposits, consisting of public securities, Sardinia will receive
three-fifths, and Austria two-fifths ; and as to that part
of the Assets which consists of Lands or Mortgages, the
Commission will effect the partition with reference to the
situation of the Property in question, to allot such Property,
as far as possible, to that one of the two Governments
upon whose Territory it may be situated.
As to the different categories of Debts inscribed up to
4th June, 1859, in the Monte Lombardo-Veneto, and to
the capital placed at interest in the deposit bank of the
Sinking Fund, Sardinia undertakes three-fifths, and Austria
two-fifths, either for the payment of the interest, or the
reimbursement of the capital, in accordance with the
regulations hitherto in force. The Credits of Austrian
subjects shall come by preference into the quota of Austria,
who shall, within 3 months after the exchange of Ratifica-
tions, or sooner if possible, transmit to the Sardinian
Government specific lists of these Credits.
ARTICLE VIII. The Government of His Sardinian
Majesty succeeds to the Rights and Obligations resulting
from the Contracts regularly stipulated by the Austrian
Administration in respect of all matters of public interests
specially concerning the Territories ceded.
ARTICLE IX. The Austrian Government will remain
charged with the reimbursement of all Sums deposited by
Lombard subjects, by the communes, by public establish-
TREATY OF ZURICH, 1859 229
ments and religious corporations, in the Austrian public
Banks, by way of caution-money, deposits, or consign-
ments. In like manner the Austrian subjects, communes,
public establishments, and religious corporations who have
deposited sums of money as caution-money, deposits, or
consignments in the Banks of Lombardy, will be punctually
reimbursed by the Sardinian Government.
ARTICLE X. The Government of His Majesty the King
of Sardinia acknowledges and confirms the concessions of
Railways granted by the Austrian Government upon the
Territory ceded in all their clauses, and during the whole
duration of the concessions, and in particular the con-
cessions made by Contracts dated i4th March, 1856,
8th April, 1857, and 23rd September, 1858.
From the day of the date of the exchange of the Ratifica-
tions of the present Treaty, the Sardinian Government is
invested with all the rights and subjected to all the obliga-
tions appertaining to the Austrian Government in respect
of the said concessions in all that relates to the railway
lines situate on the Territory ceded. In consequence, the
right of Devolution which belonged to the Austrian Govern-
ment in regard to these Railways is transferred to the
Sardinian Government.
The Payments which remain to be made on the sum due
to the State by the grantees by virtue of the Contract of
I4th March, 1856, by way of equivalent for the expenses
of making the said Railways, will be paid in their entirety
to the Austrian Treasury.
The credits of the Building Contractors and Tradesmen,
and also the compensation money for land taken, so far
as they may appertain respectively to the time when the
Railways in question were administered for the account
of the State, and which have not hitherto been paid, will
be borne by the Austrian Government, and, in so far as
they may be due from them by virtue of the concession,
by the grantees in the name of the Austrian Government.
A special Convention will regulate, with as little delay
as possible, the international service of the Railways
between Sardinia and Austria.
ARTICLE XI. It is understood that the recovery of the
Credits under paragraphs 12, 13, 14, 15, and 16 of the
Contract of I4th March, 1856, shall not confer upon Austria
any right of Control or Surveillance in the construction
230 THE UNION OF ITALY
and working of the Railways in the Territories ceded.
The Sardinian Government undertakes, for its part, to
furnish the Austrian Government with all the information
which it may require on this head.
ARTICLE XII. The Lombard Subjects domiciled ori the
ceded Territory shall enjoy for the space of one year,
commencing with the day of the exchange of the Ratifica-
tions, and conditionally on a previous Declaration before
the competent authorities, full and entire permission to
export their Moveables, free of duty, and to withdraw
with their families into the States of His Imperial and
Royal Apostolic Majesty, in which case their quality of
Austrian Subjects shall be retained by them. They shall
be free to preserve their Immoveable property, situated on
the Territory of Lombardy.
The same permission is accorded reciprocally to Indi-
viduals, Natives of the ceded Territory of Lombardy, estab-
lished in the States of His Majesty the Emperor of Austria.
The Lombards who shall profit by the present arrange-
ments shall not be, on account of their choice, disturbed
on one side or on the other, in their persons or in their
properties situated in the respective States.
The delay of one year is extended to two years, for the
Subjects, Natives of the ceded Territory of Lombardy,
who, at the time of the exchange of the Ratifications of
the present Treaty, shall be beyond the Territory of the
Austrian Monarchy. Their Declaration may be received
by the nearest Austrian Mission, or by the superior authori-
ties of any province of the Monarchy.
ARTICLE XIII. The Lombard subjects forming part of
the Austrian Army, with the exception of those who are
natives of the part of the Lombard Territory retained by
His Majesty the Emperor of Austria, shall be immediately
set free from Military Service and sent back to their
homes.
It is understood that those who declare their wish to
remain in the service of His Imperial and Royal Apostolic
Majesty shall not be disturbed on that account, either in
their persons or in their properties.
The same guarantees are given to persons in Civil
Employments, natives. of Lombardy, who shall manifest
their intention of retaining the offices which they hold in
the service of Austria.
TREATY OF ZURICH, 1859 231
ARTICLE XIV. Pensions, Civil as well as Military,
regularly paid, and which were charged on the public
revenue of Lombardy, remain in the possession of those
who are entitled to them, and when there is occasion, to
their widows and their children, and shall be paid in future
by the Government of His Sardinian Majesty.
This stipulation extends to the holders of Pensions,
Civil as well as Military, as well as to their widows and
children, without distinction of origin, who shall retain
their domicile in the ceded Territory, and whose claims,
paid up to 1814 by the ci-devant Kingdom of Italy, then
fell to the charge of the Austrian Treasury.
ARTICLE XV. The Archives containing the Titles of
Property, and Documents connected with administration
and civil justice, whether they relate to the part of Lom-
bardy whose possession is reserved to His Majesty the
Emperor of Austria, or to the Venetian Provinces, shall
be handed over to the Commissioners of His Imperial and
Royal Apostolic Majesty as soon as possible.
Reciprocally the Titles of Property, and Documents
connected with administration and civil justice, concern-
ing the ceded Territory, which may be found in the Archives
of the Emperor of Austria, shall be handed over to the
Commissioners of His Majesty the King of Sardinia.
The Governments of Sardinia and Austria bind them-
selves to communicate reciprocally on the demand of the
higher administrative authorities, all the documents and
information relative to matters concerning at once Lom-
bardy and Venetia.
ARTICLE XVI. The Religious Corporations established
in Lombardy, whose existence the Sardinian laws would
not authorise, shall be free to dispose of their Property,
both Moveable and Immoveable.
ARTICLE XVII. All the Treaties and Conventions con-
cluded between His Majesty the King of Sardinia and His
Majesty the Emperor of Austria which were in force before
the ist April, 1859, are confirmed in as far as they are not
modified by the present Treaty. At the same time the two
High Contracting Parties bind themselves to submit,
within the term of a year, these Treaties and Conventions
to a general revision, in order to introduce into them by
common agreement, such modifications as shall be con-
sidered in accordance with the interests of the two countries.
232 THE UNION OF ITALY
In the meanwhile these Treaties and Conventions are
extended to the Territory recently acquired by His Majesty
the King of Sardinia.
ARTICLE XVIII. The Navigation of the Lake of Garda
is free, except as regards the special regulations of the
Ports and the Water Police. The liberty of Navigation
of the Po and its affluents is maintained in accordance
with the Treaties.
A Convention designed to regulate the measures necessary
to prevent and repress smuggling in these waters will be
concluded between Sardinia and Austria, in the term of
one year, to date from the exchange of the Ratifications
of the present Treaty. In the meanwhile the arrangements
stipulated in the Convention of the 22nd November, 1851,
for the repression of smuggling on the Lake Maggiore, the
Po, and the Ticino, shall be applied to the navigation ;
and during the same interval no innovation shall be made
in the regulations and the rights of navigation in force with
regard to the Po and its affluents.
ARTICLE XIX. The Sardinian Government and the
Austrian Government bind themselves to regulate, by
a special Act, all that relates to the ownership of, and the
maintenance of the bridges and passages on the Mincio,
where it forms the Frontier, and to such new buildings as
may be made in that respect, the expenses which may
result from them, and the taking of the Tolls.
ARTICLE XX. Where the Valley of the Mincio shall
henceforth mark the Frontier between Sardinia and
Austria, the buildings intended for the rectification of the
Bed and the Damming up of that River, or which shall
be of a nature to alter its current, shall be made by common
agreement between the two adjoining States. An ulterior
arrangement will regulate this matter.
ARTICLE XXI. The inhabitants of the adjoining districts
shall enjoy reciprocally the Facilities which were formerly
assured to the dwellers on the Banks of the Ticino.
ARTICLE XXII. In order to contribute, with all their
efforts, to the pacification of men's minds, His Majesty
the King of Sardinia and His Majesty the Emperor of
Austria declare and promise that, in their respective
Territories, and in the Countries restored or ceded, no
Individual compromised on the occasion of the late events
in the Peninsula, of whatever class or condition he may
TREATY OF ZURICH, 1859 233
be, shall be prosecuted, disturbed, or troubled in his person
or in his property, on account of his political conduct and
opinions.
ARTICLE XXIII. The present Treaty shall be ratified,
and its Ratifications exchanged at Zurich in the space of
15 days, or sooner if possible.
In faith of which the respective Plenipotentiaries have
signed and sealed it.
Done at Zurich, on the loth day of the month of
November, in the year of Grace, 1859.
(L.S.) KAROLYI.
(L.S.) MEYSENBUG.
(L.S.) BOURQUENEY.
(L.S.) BANNEVILLE.
(L.S.) DES AMBROIS.
(L.S.) JOCTEAU.
TREATY OF PEACE BETWEEN AUSTRIA AND ITALY. SIGNED
AT VIENNA, 3RD OCTOBER, I866.1
ARTICLE I. There shall be from the date of the exchange
of the Ratifications of the present Treaty, Peace and
Friendship between His Majesty the King of Italy and
His Majesty the Emperor of Austria, their heirs and suc-
cessors, their States and their respective subjects in
perpetuity.
ARTICLE II. The Italian and Austrian Prisoners of War
shall be immediately delivered up on both sides.
ARTICLE III. His Majesty the Emperor of Austria agrees
to the Union of the Lombardo- Venetian Kingdom to the
Kingdom of Italy.
ARTICLE IV. The Frontier of the Ceded Territory is
determined by the actual administrative confines of the
Lombardo- Venetian Kingdom.
A Military Commission appointed by the two Contract-
ing Powers shall be entrusted with the execution of the
tracing on the spot within the shortest possible delay.
ARTICLE V. The evacuation of the Ceded Territory
1 French version in State Papers, vol. Ivi, p. 700 ; Hcrtslet. vol. iii,
No. 392.
234 THE UNION OF ITALY
determined by the preceding Article, shall begin immediately
after the signature of Peace, and shall be terminated in the
shortest possible delay, in conformity with the arrange-
ments agreed upon between the Special Commissioners
appointed to that effect.
ARTICLE VI. The Italian Government will take upon
itself :
ist. The portion of the Monte Lombardo-Veneto which
devolved upon Austria in virtue of the Convention con-
cluded at Milan in 1860 for the execution of Article VII
of the Treaty of Zurich ;
2ndly. The Debts added to the Monte Lombardo-Veneto
since the 4th of June, 1859, UP to the day of the conclusion
of the present Treaty ;
3rdly. A sum of 35,000,000 florins, Austrian currency, in
cash, for the portion of the Loan of 1854, allotted to
Venetia, and for the price of the non-transportable War
Material. The manner of paying that sum of 35,000,000
florins, Austrian currency, in cash, shall, in conformity with
the precedent of the Treaty of Zurich, be determined in an
Additional Article.
ARTICLE VII. A Commission, composed of Italian,
Austrian, and French Delegates, shall proceed to the
liquidation of the different classes mentioned in the two
first paragraphs of the preceding Article, taking into account
the Sinking Fund already paid, and the Property, Assets,
of every kind, constituting the Sinking Fund. That Com-
mission shall proceed with the Definitive Regulation of
the Accounts between the Contracting Parties, and shall
fix the time and method to be employed for the liquidation
of the Monte Lombardo-Veneto.
ARTICLE VIII. The Government of His Majesty the
King of Italy succeeds to the Rights and Obligations re-
sulting from Contracts regularly stipulated by the Austrian
Administration for objects of public interest, especially
concerning the ceded Territory.
ARTICLE IX. The Austrian Government is charged with
the Reimbursement of all sums paid by subjects of the
ceded Territory, communal districts, public establishments,
and religious societies into the Austrian public Banks in
the shape of caution-money, deposits, or consignments.
In the same manner, Austrian subjects, communes, public
establishments, and religious societies, who have paid
TREATY OF VIENNA, 1866 235
money into the Banks of the ceded Territories in the shape
of caution-money, deposits, or consignments, will be
punctually reimbursed by the Italian Government.
ARTICLE X. The Government of His Majesty the King
of Italy recognises and confirms the concessions granted
to the Railroads by the Austrian Government in the ceded
Territory, to the full extent of all their arrangements and
duration, and particularly the concessions resulting from
the Contracts passed under date of I4th March, 1856,
8th April, 1857, and 23rd September, 1858.
The Italian Government also recognises and confirms
the stipulations of the Convention of 2oth November 1861,
between the Administration of the South Lombardo-
Venetian and Central Italian Railway Company, as well
as the Convention of the 27th February 1866, between the
Imperial Minister of Finances and Commerce and the
South Austrian Society.
From the time of the exchange of the Ratifications of
this Treaty, the Italian Government is bound by all the
Rights and Obligations resulting to the Austrian Govern-
ment by the above-mentioned Convention, in regard to
the Lines of Railway situated on the ceded Territory ;
consequently the right of Devolution which belonged to
the Austrian Government.
The Payments which are still to be made of the sum due
to the State by the Concessionaries in virtue of the Contract
of I4th March, 1856, as an equivalent for the expense of
construction of the said Railroads, shall be paid in full into
the Austrian Exchequer.
The Credits of the building Contractors and Tradesmen,
as well as the Indemnities for appropriation of land, which
appertain to the time when the Railways in question were
administered on account of the State, and which have not
yet been paid, will be paid by the Austrian Government,
and, in so far as they may be due from them in virtue of
the Act of Concession by the grantees of the Austrian
Government.
ARTICLE XI. It is understood that the recovery of the
debts, resulting from Paragraphs 12, 13, 14, 15, and 16
of the Contract of the I4th March, 1856, will give Austria
no right of control or superintendence over the construc-
tion and working of Railways in the ceded Territory. The
Italian Government engages on its part to communicate
236 THE UNION OF ITALY
all the information which may be asked for on the subject
by the Austrian Government.
ARTICLE -XII. In order to extend to the Venetian Rail-
ways the Stipulations of Article XV of the Convention of
the 2yth February 1866, the High Contracting Parties
engage to enter as soon as possible, in concert with the
South Austrian Railway Company, into a Convention for
the administrative and economical separation of the
Venetian and Austrian Railways.
In virtue of the Convention of the 27th February, 1866,
the guarantee that the State has to pay to the South
Austrian Railway Company shall be calculated on the
basis of the net produce of the whole of the Venetian and
Austrian Lines forming the networks of the South Austrian
Railways actually conceded to the Company. It is under-
stood that the Italian Government will take upon itself
a proportionate part of that Guarantee corresponding to
the Lines in the ceded Territory, and that the basis of the
net produce of the Austrian and Venetian Lines conceded
to the said Company shall still form the basis for the
evaluation of that Guarantee.
ARTICLE XIII. The Italian and Austrian Governments,
desirous of extending the relations between the two States,
engage to facilitate Railway Communications and to
favour the establishment of new Lines to unite the Italian
and Austrian networks. The Government of His Imperial
and Royal Apostolic Majesty promises besides to hasten as
much as possible the conclusion of the Brenner Line de-
stined to unite the Valley of the Adige with that of the Inn.
ARTICLE XIV. Inhabitants or natives of the Territory
ceded by the present Treaty will have, for the space of
a year, from the day of the date on which the Ratifications
are exchanged, and conditionally on a previous declaration
before the competent authorities, full and entire power
to export their Moveables, free of duty, and to retire with
their families into the States of His Imperial and Royal
Apostolic Majesty, in which case their quality of Austrian
subjects will be retained by them. They will be at liberty
to keep their immoveable property situated on the ceded
Territory.
The same power is granted reciprocally to natives of the
ceded Territory of Lombardy living in the States of His
Majesty the Emperor of Austria.
TREATY OF VIENNA, 1866 237
The Lombards who profit by these arrangements cannot
be, on account of their choice, disturbed on either side,
in their persons or their properties situated in the respective
States.
The delay of one year is extended to two years, for the
subjects, natives of the ceded Territory of Lombardy, who
at the time of the exchange of the Ratifications of this
Treaty are not within the Territory of the Austrian
Monarchy. Their Declaration may be received by the
nearest Austrian Mission, or by the superior authority of
any province of the Monarchy.
ARTICLE XV. The Lombardo- Venetian subjects in the
Austrian army will be immediately discharged from
military service and sent back to their homes.
It is understood that those amongst them who declare
their wish to remain in the service of His Imperial and
Royal Apostolic Majesty shall be free to do so, and will
not be disturbed on this account, either in person or in
property.
The same guarantees are assured to the Civil Employes,
natives of the Lombardo- Venetian Kingdom, who manifest
their intention of keeping the offices they occupy in the
Austrian Service.
Civil Servants born in the Lombardo-Venetian Kingdom
shall have the choice, either of remaining in the Austrian
Service, or entering the Italian Administration, in which
case the Government of His Majesty the King of Italy
engages, either to place them in positions analogous to
those which they occupied, or allot them Pensions, the
amount of which shall be fixed according to the Laws and
Regulations in force in Austria. It is understood that the
said Civil Servants shall act under the disciplinary Laws
and Regulations of the Italian Administration.
ARTICLE XVI. Officers of Italian origin, who are actually
in the Austrian Service, shall have the choice, either of
remaining in the Service of His Imperial and Royal Apos-
tolic Majesty or of entering the Army of His Majesty the
King of Italy, with the Rank they hold in the Austrian
Army, provided they make the request within 6 months
after the Ratification of the present Treaty.
ARTICLE XVII. The Pensions, both Civil and Military,
regularly paid, and which were paid out of the public
funds of the Lombardo-Venetian Kingdom, remain due to
238 THE UNION OF ITALY
those entitled to them, and, if need be, to their widows
and children, and will be paid in future by the Government
of His Italian Majesty.
This stipulation is extended to the Pensioners, both
Civil and Military, as well as to their widows and children,
without distinction of origin, who keep their domicile in
the ceded Territory, and whose salaries, paid up to 1814
by the then Government of the Lombardo-Venetian Pro-
vinces, then became payable by the Austrian Treasury.
ARTICLE XVIII. The Archives of the ceded Territories
containing the titles to property, and documents regarding
the administration of justice, as well as the Political and
Historical Documents of the old Republic of Venice, will
be handed over to the Commissioners who shall be appointed
thereto, to whose care shall be delivered the objects of Art
and Science specially belonging to the ceded Territory.
Reciprocally, the titles to property, and documents
connected with the administration and civil justice apply-
ing to the Austrian Territories, which may be in the
Archives of the ceded Territory, will be handed over to
the Commissioners of His Imperial and Royal Apostolic
Majesty.
The Governments of Italy and Austria engage to consult
each other, at the request of the superior administrative
authorities, respecting all the documents and information
relative to the affairs which concern both the ceded Terri-
tory and the adjoining country.
They also engage to allow authentic Copies to be taken
of Historical and Political Documents which may interest
the Territories remaining respectively in the possession of
the other Contracting Power, and which, in the interest
of science, cannot be taken from the Archives to which
they belong.
ARTICLE XIX. The High Contracting Powers engage
reciprocally to grant the greatest possible Customs Facilities
to the bordering Inhabitants of the two Countries for the
improvement of their property and the exercise of their
trade.
ARTICLE XX. The Treaties and Conventions which
have been confirmed by Article XVII of the Treaty of
Peace signed at Zurich, on the loth November, 1859, shall
be temporarily renewed for one year, and shall extend to
all the Territories of the Kingdom of Italy. In the case
TREATY OF VIENNA, 1866 239
where those Treaties and Conventions shall not be denounced
3 months before the expiration of a year dating from the
exchange of the Ratifications, they shall remain in force,
and so on, from year to year.
ARTICLE XXI. The two High Contracting Powers reserve
to themselves to enter, as soon as possible, into negotia-
tions on the widest bases reciprocally to facilitate business
between the two Countries.
Until then, and for the term fixed in the preceding
Article, the Treaty of Commerce and Navigation of the
i8th October, 1851, shall remain in force and shall apply
to the whole Territory of the Kingdom of Italy.
ARTICLE XXII. The Princes and Princesses of the House
of Austria, as well as the Princesses who have entered into
the Imperial Family by marriage, shall, on proving their
Titles, recover their Private Property in full and entire
possession, as well Personal as Real, which they shall be
allowed to enjoy and to dispose of without being molested
in any manner in the enjoyment of their Rights.
Nevertheless, all the Rights of the State and of Indi-
viduals are reserved to be prosecuted by legal means.
ARTICLE XXIII. With a view to contribute by every
effort to quiet the public mind, the King of Italy and His
Majesty the Emperor of Austria declare and promise that
in their respective Territories there shall be a full and
entire amnesty for all individuals compromised on account
of Political Events in the Peninsula up to the present time ;
consequently no individual, no matter what may be his
rank or position in society, shall be prosecuted, annoyed,
or troubled, in person or property, or in the exercise of his
rights, on account of his conduct or political opinions.
ARTICLE XXIV. The present Treaty shall be ratified,
and the Ratifications exchanged at Vienna within a fort-
night, or earlier if possible.
In faith of which, the respective Plenipotentiaries have
signed it, and have affixed their Seals thereunto.
Done at Vienna, on the 3rd day of the month of October,
of the year of Grace, 1866.
(L.S.) MENABREA.
(L.S.) WIMPFFEN.
240 THE UNION OF ITALY
ADDITIONAL ARTICLE.
The Government of His Majesty the King of Italy
engages itself towards the Government of His Imperial
and Royal Apostolic Majesty to pay 35,000,000 florins,
Austrian value, equivalent to 87,500,000 francs, stipulated
by Article VI of the present Treaty, in the manner and at
the periods hereinafter determined :
7,000,000 florins shall be paid in cash by 7 Bills or Treasury
Bonds to the order of the Austrian Government, payable
at Paris, at the place of business of one of the first Bankers,
or of an Establishment of the first order, without interest,
on the expiration of the 3rd month, dating from the day of
the signature of the present Treaty, and which will be
handed to the Plenipotentiary of His Imperial and Royal
Apostolic Majesty at the time of the exchange of Ratifica-
tions.
The payment of the remaining 28,000,000 florins shall
take place at Vienna in cash, in 10 Bills or Treasury Bonds
to the order of the Austrian Government, payable at
Paris, at the rate of 2,800,000 florins (Austrian value) each
to reach maturity successively at intervals of two months.
These 10 Bills or Treasury Bonds shall likewise be handed
to the Plenipotentiary of His Imperial and Royal Apos-
tolic Majesty on the exchange of the Ratifications. The
first of these Bills, or Treasury Bonds, will be payable two
months after the payment of the Bills or Treasury Bonds
of 7,000,000 florins above stipulated. For that period, as
for the others following, becoming due on every succeeding
two months, the interest will be reckoned at 5 per cent.,
dating from the first day of the month which will follow
the exchange of the Ratifications of the present Treaty.
The payment of the Interest shall take place at Paris
at the expiration of each Bill or Treasury Bond.
The present Additional Article shall have the same
force and value as if inserted word for word in the Treaty
of this day.
Vienna, 3rd October, 1866.
(L.S.) MENABREA.
tL.S.) WIMPFFEN.
CHAPTER VIII
AUSTRIA AND PRUSSIA
Treaty of Vienna (1864) — Convention of Gastein — Policy of
Bismarck — Napoleon III — Dispute between Austria and Prussia
— Proposal for Conference — Lord Clarendon — Austrian mani-
festo — War — Preliminaries of Peace — Treaty of Prague —
Annexations — Treaties with minor German States — The North
German Confederation.
Text : The Treaty of Prague ( 1 866) .
NEITHER the Treaty of Peace with Denmark in 1864 nor
the Convention of Gastein in 1865, to which allusion has
already been made, completely set at rest the questions
previously at issue respecting the Danish Duchies, nor in
all probability were they intended to do so by one at least
of the parties concerned. The first-named gave the Elbe
Duchies to be administered jointly by Austria and Prussia ;
the latter superseded the joint administration, giving that
of Schleswig to Prussia and that of Hoist ein to Austria.
It moreover awarded Lauenburg to Prussia in return for
a money payment to be made to Austria, and it laid the
foundation for a German Navy, a German naval base at
Kiel, and a Kiel Canal, all under the command or control
of Prussia. Bismarck, who, soon after the accession of
William I to the throne of Prussia, was appointed by the
new monarch to the post of Prime Minister and Minister
for Foreign Affairs, had from the outset occupied himself
with the idea of advancing Prussia to the first place in
the Germanic Confederation. The position of Austria as
President of the Diet at Frankfort was an obstacle in the
way of the realization of this idea, and by gradual steps
1003
242 AUSTRIA AND PRUSSIA
extending over years he sought to eliminate Austria from
her place in the councils of Germany and to reform the
Constitution of the Germanic Confederation.
The question of the Danish Duchies lent itself to the
achievement of this design. First came the dismemberment of
Denmark in 1864, then the modifications effected at Gastein
in 1865. The Convention of Gastein (August 14, 1865) for
a time staved off the threatened war between Austria and
Prussia by introducing a modus vivendi in the Duchies and
putting a stop to the squabbles arising out of the joint
control. This enabled Bismarck to complete his arrange-
ments and to win over his sovereign to his views, the King
of Prussia being at that time averse from entering upon a
war with Austria. No sooner was the Convention concluded
than Bismarck, in September 1865, approached the Emperor
of the French with a view to obtaining his concurrence in
the idea of an offensive Alliance between Prussia and Italy
against Austria. Napoleon III, always desirous of seeing
Venetia united to Italy, and perhaps actuated also by other
political reasons, raised no objection to the proposal, and
the chance of interference from this quarter being removed,
a treaty of offensive and defensive Alliance was con-
cluded between Prussia and Italy in April 1866. Meantime
the dissensions in the Germanic Diet concerning the
Duchies had led Prussia to put forward demands for the
re-constitution of the Germanic Confederation. Reforms
proposed by Austria were discarded by Prussia, who took
steps to ascertain what amount of support she could
count upon from the minor German States in the event
of war. Austria announced in March 1866 that she would
refer the Duchies question to the Federal Diet, and she
pressed upon the Diet the necessity of mobilizing the Federal
armies ; the Diet agreed to the Austrian proposal for mobi-
lization. Prussia thereupon sent troops into Holstein, and
declared in the Diet on June 14, 1866, that the action of
Austria in the matter of the mobilization constituted
PROPOSAL FOR CONFERENCE 243
a breach of the Federal Act which decreed that no member
of the Confederation should make war upon another
member ; in a long argumentative document she announced
that she considered the dissolution of the Federal Pact as
accomplished, and would act accordingly.1
Before matters had arrived at this pitch, that is to say
at the beginning of May 1866, fresh endeavours were
made by Great Britain, France, and Russia to avert the
threatened war between Austria and Prussia by means of
assembling a conference or congress of the Powers to dis-
cuss the matters in dispute.2 Lord Clarendon, the British
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, in a dispatch to the"
ambassador at Paris, while assenting to the idea of a
congress mooted by France, went on to say, ' But Her
Majesty's Government consider that a congress should
not meet without its objects being previously defined and
without a reasonable prospect of effecting the purpose for
which it was convoked. The origin of the unfortunate
dispute between Prussia and Austria is the Duchies, upon
the annexation of which Prussia appears to be determined.
Could a congress sanction such a policy, which could only
be carried into effect by violence, if the wishes of the people
were not consulted, and if they were, assuredly Prussia
would not obtain the Duchies ? With regard to the cession
of Venetia, it is notorious that Austria will not cede her
Italian provinces unless she obtains territorial compensa-
tion elsewhere ; but where is this to be obtained ? ' Lord
Clarendon therefore proposed that, inasmuch as a congress
would be powerless to enforce its decisions, an appeal
should be made to the three Powers on the point of taking
the field, by Great Britain, France, and Russia, who, in-
voking the Protocol of Paris,3 should call upon them to
resume the status quo.
1 Hertslet's Map of Europe by Treaty, vol. iii, p. 1652.
1 The three questions at issue were the Danish Duchies, the
position of Venetia, and the reform of the German Federal Diet.
' As to having recourse to mediation before entering on a war,
R 2
244 AUSTRIA AND PRUSSIA
France did not fall in with this suggestion, but was in
favour of a preliminary meeting between England, France,
and Russia to settle a programme and announce a ' firm
intention ' to solve the international difficulties in the
direction of peace. The words, ' a firm intention/ were
demurred to by England as possibly tending to commit
her to action she did not contemplate. France argued, on
the other hand, though deprecating the employment of
force in giving effect to the firm intention, that the decisions
of the Powers would be stripped of all authority if they
were to declare beforehand that the enforcement of their
' decisions by arms was absolutely renounced by them.
A conference at Paris was therefore decided on, and
Austria, Prussia, Italy, and the Germanic Confederation
were invited to take part in it. Prussia accepted the
invitation, but did not admit that the question of the
Elbe Duchies was the one which menaced the peace of
Europe, ' a question she had never intended to make
a casus belli ' ; it was, rather, the menacing attitude and
military preparations of Austria and other German States
which had given rise to the complications.1
Italy and the Germanic Confederation also accepted the
invitation. Austria accepted it likewise, but she attached
to her acceptance of it a condition to the effect that all
discussions with a view to a territorial aggrandizement or
an increase of power of any one of the Powers invited to
the conference be excluded from its deliberations.2 This
condition was held to exclude from consideration the most
important of the questions in dispute, and as a result
(June 8, 1866) no conference took place.3
Thus, Prussia having declared the Germanic Confedera-
April 14, 1856. State Papers, vol. xlvi, p. 133. See below, p. 270.
A similar, and, this time, compulsory provision is contained in
Art. 12 of the Covenant of the League oi Nations, June 28, 1919.
1 State Papers, vol. Ivii, p. 395.
* Ibid., vol. Ivii, p. 402.
1 Ibid., vol. Ivii, p. 411.
246 AUSTRIA AND PRUSSIA
tion to be dissolved, and having withdrawn from it, placing
the blame upon Austria and the Diet, and having more-
over entered into an alliance with Italy, no alternative to
war remained. The Austrian manifesto declaring war was
dated June 17, the Prussian June 18, and the Italian
June 19, 1866.
The manifesto of the Emperor of Austria declaring war
against Prussia and Italy went into some detail concern-
ing the causes which had necessitated an appeal to arms.1
Though slightly coloured with a tint of bias, it probably
gives a fairly accurate representation of the position of
affairs. His Majesty declared that he was threatened on
two frontiers by enemies allied for the purpose of break-
ing the power of Austria, to neither of whom he had given
cause for war. For one of the Powers a favourable oppor-
tunity was a sufficient excuse for going to war.2 The
Emperor went on to say that after the conquest of the
Elbe Duchies, an aggressive war against Austria was at
once prepared for ; that on his offer of simultaneous
disarmament, Prussia demanded a previous disarmament
by Austria, and that no negotiations respecting the Duchies
could succeed because Prussia was violent and intent on
conquest. She had forcibly ejected the Austrian garrison
from Holstein, and when the German ' Bund ' had adopted
the Austrian proposal to mobilize the Federal troops, she
violently severed the tie which united the German races
and seceded from the Bund. ' We shall not be alone ',
added the Emperor, ' in the struggle which is about to
take place. The Princes and Peoples of Germany know
that their liberty and independence are menaced by
a Power which listens but to the dictates of egotism and
1 State Papers, vol. Ixiii, p. 580.
* This was true enough : it was notorious that Italy was biding
her time with a view to acquiring Venetia, of which her Alliance
with Prussia is a proof. On the other hand, it is to be borne in mind
that the internal condition of Venetia under Austrian rule justified
the Italian desire for the emancipation of that kingdom.
PRELIMINARIES OF PEACE 247
is under the influence of an ungovernable craving after
aggrandizement.'
Saxony, Bavaria, Wurtemberg, Baden, and Hesse-
Cassel threw in their lot with Austria. There can be
little doubt that the latter confidently expected a favour-
able issue from the contest, but superior strategy and
rapidity of movement on the part of the Prussians (under
the guidance of von Moltke) turned the scale in the opposite
direction. After several reverses, and notwithstanding
a measure of success against the Italian forces, Austria
was glad to have recourse to the mediation of France
with a view to peace, at the same time ceding to France
the Lombardo- Venetian Kingdom on an understanding
that it would be passed on to Italy.1
France, in communication with the two belligerents,
Austria and Prussia, thereupon drew up a document to
serve as a basis for the conclusion of peace, which being
accepted by them, a Preliminary Treaty of Peace founded
upon it was signed between those two Powers at Nikolsburg
on July 26, 1 866.2
These Preliminaries declared :
Article I. The Austrian territory to remain intact, except-
ing Venetia. Article II. The dissolution of the Germanic
Confederation : new organization to be without the partici-
pation of Austria, &c. Article III. Transfer of Austrian
rights in the Duchies of Schleswig and Holstein to Prussia
and reunion of North Schleswig to Denmark. Article IV.
The payment of a war indemnity to Prussia. Article V.
The territorial integrity of Saxony, &c. Article VI. That
Italy should approve of the Preliminaries of Peace, &c.
Article VII. That the Preliminaries should be ratified.
Article VIII. That peace should be concluded on the
basis of the Preliminaries. Article IX. That an armistice
should be concluded between the various States.
* Queen Victoria had proposed that England should intervene
against Prussia : Lord Russell refused. See Egerton, British
Foreign Policy, p. 283. * State Papers, vol. Ivi, p. 1029.
248 AUSTRIA AND PRUSSIA
The definitive Treaty of Peace between Austria and
Prussia was signed at Prague on August 23, 1866.
The first Article of this Treaty contained the usual peace
and friendship stipulation.
The second Article recorded the consent of Austria to the
union of the Lombardo- Venetian Kingdom with Italy.
The third Article provided for the liberation of prisoners
of war; the details of this and of the evacuation of
Austrian territory were given in a Protocol appended to
the Treaty.
By the fourth Article Austria acknowledged the dissolu-
tion of the Germanic Confederation,1 and consented to
a new organization without the participation of Austria.
The fifth Article transferred to Prussia all the rights
over Schleswig and Holstein acquired by Austria under
the Treaty of October 30, 1864 (see p. 199), with a con-
dition for the cession to Denmark of Northern Schleswig,
if desired by the populations.2
The sixth Article guaranteed the territories of Saxony,
subject to a contribution to the expenses of the war, and
recorded the recognition by Austria of the arrangements
to be made by Prussia in North Germany.
The seventh Article provided for arrangements to be
made respecting the late Federal property, by means of
a commission.
The eighth Article dealt with the removal or disposal of
Imperial property in Federal fortresses, &c.
The ninth Article secured payment of pensions of
Federal officials ; pensions of officers of Schleswig-Holstein
Army were to be paid by Prussia.
The tenth Article secured payment of pensions granted
1 This Confederation had been established by the Powers of
Europe at the Congress of Vienna in 1815. It was thus dissolved
without their connivance.
2 This condition was rescinded by arrangement between Austria
and Prussia — see p. 252, note.
TREATIES OF PEACE 249
by the Austrian Lieutenancy in Holstein, and the restora-
tion of bonds belonging to the Holstein Treasury ; it also
decreed the non-molestation of persons belonging to the
Duchies, and of Austrian and Prussian subjects on account
of political conduct during recent events.
The eleventh Article fixed the war indemnity to be paid
by Austria to Prussia.
The twelfth Article provided for the evacuation of
Austrian territory ; the details of this were embodied in
a Protocol annexed to the Treaty.
The thirteenth Article renewed the treaties in operation
before the war, as far as applicable to new conditions, and
adumbrated a revision of the Zollverein Treaty of I865.1
The fourteenth and last Article provided for the exchange
of ratifications within eight days.
The ratifications were duly exchanged on August 30,
1866.
As soon as the Preliminaries of Peace were signed,
Prussia set about the reconstruction of the map of Europe
as affected by the events of the late war.
On August 13 (1866) she signed a Treaty of Peace with
Wurtemberg, providing for a war indemnity, the re-
establishment of Zollverein Treaties, the regulation of
railway traffic and communications, &c.2
On August 1 6 the Prussian Landtag was called upon to
sanction the annexation of Hanover, Hesse-Cassel, Nassau,
and Frankfort to Prussia. This sanction was accorded
and a decree promulgated on September 20, i866.3
On August 17 Prussia signed a Treaty of Peace with
Baden, similar to the Wurtemberg Treaty, but providing in
1 In 1833 a Customs Union or Zollverein was arranged by treaty
between Prussia and several other German States, the object being
to establish reciprocal treatment inter se with regard to trade,
customs-duties, tariffs, and kindred matters. Other States, not
originally signatories, subsequently joined the Union. Austria
joined it by a treaty dated April n, 1865. (See Stale Papers,
vol. Iviii, p. 352.)
* State Papers, vol. Ivii, p. 1163. ' Ibid., vol. Ivi, p. 1067.
250 AUSTRIA AND PRUSSIA
addition for the abolition of navigation dues on the
Rhine.1
On August 22 she signed a Treaty of Peace with Bavaria,
similar to the foregoing, dealing also with the renewal
of treaties, navigation dues on the Rhine and Main,
telegraphs, cessions of territory to Prussia, &c.2
On September 3 she signed a Treaty of Peace with
Hesse-Darmstadt of a similar nature, stipulating for the
abolition of navigation dues on the Rhine and on the
Main, as well as for mutual cessions of territory, &c.3
On October 8 she signed a Treaty of Peace with Saxe-
Meiningen, renewing treaties, declaring cessions of territory
to Prussia, with exclusive use of posts and telegraphs, &c.4
On October 21 she signed a Treaty of Peace with Saxony.
It dealt with war indemnity, reorganization of Saxon
troops as an integral part of the North German Federal
Army under the supreme command of the King of Prussia,
renewal of treaties, railways, post and telegraph service,
abolition of rights of Leipzig University, cessions of
territory by Saxony, fortress of Konigstein, &c.6
Treaties of offensive and defensive alliance were also
concluded between Prussia and various South German
States in August and September 1866.
By these several treaties, by the annexation of Hanover
and other territories, and by the creation of a North
German Confederation to take the place of the old Germanic
Confederation, Germany (to the exclusion of Austria) was
reconstituted under the control of Prussia.
The constitution of the new North German Confedera-
tion was promulgated on June 14, i867.6
In the Federal Council, composed of the members of the
Confederation, Prussia had the preponderating influence
with 17 votes as against 4 votes for Saxony, 2 votes each
1 State Papers, vol. Ivii, p. 1165. 2 Ibid., vol. Ivi, p. 1044.
3 Ibid., vol. Ivi, p. 1057. 4 Ibid., vol. Ivi, p. 1082.
* Ibid., vol. Ivi, pp. 1084, 1090. • Ibid., vol. Ivii, p. 296.
NORTH GERMAN CONFEDERATION 251
for Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Brunswick, and I vote
each for the remaining 18 members, making a total of
43 votes in all.
The presidency of the Confederation was vested in
Prussia, with the right of representing the Confederation
internationally, of declaring war and concluding peace,
of entering into alliances and other treaties with foreign
States, and of accrediting and receiving ambassadors in
the name of the Confederation.
All the land forces of the Confederation formed one
single army under the command of the King of Prussia
as Federal commander-in-chief, who, amongst other attri-
butes, possessed the right of erecting fortresses on Federal
territory. The Federal navy, likewise, was placed under
the command-in-chief of Prussia. These were some of
the more important of the stipulations of the Constitution,
which, however, dealt with many other subjects, such as
commerce, railways, posts and telegraphs, customs and
such-like. It was, moreover, declared that a majority of
two-thirds of the votes in the Federal Council was requisite
in order to effect an alteration of the Constitution.
TREATY OF PEACE BETWEEN AUSTRIA AND PRUSSIA.
SIGNED AT PRAGUE, 23RD AUGUST, I866.1
ARTICLE I. There shall be Peace and Friendship between
His Majesty the Emperor of Austria and His Majesty the
King of Prussia, and between their heirs and successors, as
well as between their respective States and subjects, hence-
forth and for ever.
ARTICLE II. For the purpose of carrying out Article VI
of the Preliminaries of Peace concluded at Nikolsburg on
the 26th July, 1866, and as His Majesty the Emperor of
the French officially declared through his accredited
Ambassador to His Majesty the King of Prussia, on the
2gih July, 1866, ' qu'en ce qui concerne le Gouvernement
de I'Empereur, la Venetie est acquise a 1'Italie pour lui
etre remise a la Paix,' — His Majesty the Emperor of Austria
1 Stale Papers, vol. Ivi, p. 1050; Hertslet, vol. iii, No. 388.
252 AUSTRIA AND PRUSSIA
also accedes on his part to that Declaration and gives his
consent to the Union of the Lombardo- Venetian Kingdom
with the Kingdom of Italy, without any other burdensome
condition than the liquidation of those Debts which, being
charged on the Territories ceded, are to be recognized in
accordance with the precedent of the Treaty of Zurich.
ARTICLE III. The Prisoners of War shall be set at
liberty immediately on both sides.
ARTICLE IV. His Majesty the Emperor of Austria
acknowledges the dissolution of the Germanic Confedera-
tion as hitherto constituted, and gives his consent to a new
organization of Germany without the participation of the
Imperial Austrian State. His Majesty likewise promises
to recognize the more restricted Federal relatidks which
His Majesty the King of Prussia will establish to the
north of the line of the Main ; and he declares his con-
currence in the formation of an Association of the German
States situated to the south of that line, whose national
connexion with the North German Confederation is reserved
for further arrangement between the parties, and which
will have an independent international existence.
ARTICLE V. His Majesty the Emperor of Austria
transfers to His Majesty the King of Prussia all the rights
which he acquired by the Vienna Treaty of Peace of
30th October, 1864, over the Duchies of Holstein and
Schleswig, with the condition that the populations of the
Northern Districts of Schleswig shall be ceded to Denmark
if, by a free vote, they express a wish to be united to
Denmark.1
ARTICLE VI. At the desire of His Majesty the Emperor
of Austria, His Majesty the King of Prussia declares his
willingness to let the present Territorial condition of the
Kingdom of Saxony remain to the same extent as before,
in the alterations which are about to be made in Germany ;
but he reserves to himself the right of arranging the con-
tribution of Saxony to the expenses of the War, and the
future position of the Kingdom of Saxony in the North
German Confederation, by a special Treaty to be con-
cluded with His Majesty the King of Saxony.
1 This condition was abrogated by treaty between Prussia and
Austria (Vienna, October n, 1878), see Nouveau Recueil, nme serie,
t. iii, and Manuel historique de la Question du Slesvig, by F. de
Jessen (Copenhagen, 1906), p. 312.
TREATY OF PRAGUE, 1866 253
On the other hand, His Majesty the Emperor of Austria
promises to recognise the new arrangements that will be
made by His Majesty the King of Prussia in North Germany,
including the Territorial alterations.
ARTICLE VII. For the purpose of making arrangements
respecting the late Federal Property, a Commission will
meet at Frankfort-on-the-Main within 6 weeks at farthest
from the Ratification of this Treaty, to which Commission
all claims and demands on the German Confederation are
to be sent in, and they will be liquidated within 6 months.
Austria and Prussia will send Representatives to that
Commission, and all the other late Federal Governments
are at liberty to do the same.
ARTICLE VIII. Austria has the right of removing or
otherwise disposing of the Imperial Property in the Federal
Fortresses, and the part of the movable Federal Property
belonging to Austria, according to specification ; the same
is the case with all the movable effects of the Confedera-
tion.
ARTICLE IX. The Pensions to which the regular Officials,
Servants, and Pensioners of the Confederation are entitled,
or which have already been granted, will be secured to
them pro rata of the register.
The Royal Prussian Government, however, undertakes
the Pensions and Allowances hitherto paid out of the
Federal matriculation fund to the Officers of the former
Schleswig-Holstein Army and their survivors.
ARTICLE X. The persons interested in the Pensions
granted by the Imperial Royal Austrian Lieutenancy in
Holstein will still be allowed to draw them.
The sum of 449,500 thalers of Danish currency in 4 per
cent. Danish State Bonds, which is still in the custody
of the Imperial Royal Austrian Government, and which
belongs to the Holstein Treasury, will be restored to it
immediately after the Ratification of the present Treaty.
No one belonging to the Duchies of Holstein and Schles-
wig, and no subject of their Majesties the Emperor of
Austria and the King of Prussia will be prosecuted,
molested, or obstructed in his person or property on
account of his Political conduct during the late events and
the War.
ARTICLE XI. His Majesty the Emperor of Austria under-
takes to pay to His Majesty the King of Prussia the sum
254 AUSTRIA AND PRUSSIA
of 40,000,000 Prussian thalers, to cover part of the expenses
which Prussia has been put to by the War. From that sum
is however to be deducted the amount of the War expenses
which His Majesty the Emperor of Austria has still to
demand from the Duchies of Schleswig and Holstein,
according to Article XII of the aforesaid Treaty of Vienna
of the 30th October, 1864, to the extent of 15,000,000
Prussian thalers, as well as a further sum of 5,000,000, as
an equivalent for the free maintenance which the Prussian
Army is to have in those parts of the Austrian Territories
which it occupies, until the conclusion of Peace ; so that
there only remain 20,000,000 to be paid in ready money.
One-half of that sum is to be settled when the Ratifica-
tion of the present Treaty takes place, the second half
3 weeks later at Oppeln in cash.
ARTICLE XII. The Evacuation of the Austrian Terri-
tories held by the Royal Prussian troops shall be completed
within 3 weeks after the exchange of the Ratifications of
the Treaty of Peace. From the day of the exchange of the
Ratifications the Prussian General Governments will confine
their functions to the purely military sphere of operations.
The special stipulations according to which the Evacua-
tion is to take place are settled in a separate Protocol
which forms an Appendix to the present Treaty.
ARTICLE XIII. All the Treaties and Conventions con-
cluded between the High Contracting Parties before the
War are hereby again brought into force, in so far as they
by their nature, must not lose their effect by the dissolu-
tion of the relations of the Germanic Confederation. The
General Cartel Convention between the German Federal
States, of the loth February, 1831, together with the
supplementary stipulations belonging thereto, will especi-
ally retain its validity between Austria and Prussia. The
Imperial Royal Austrian Government declares, however,
that the Monetary Treaty concluded the 24th January,
1857, loses its most essential value for Austria by the
dissolution of the German Federal relations, and the
Royal Prussian Government declares its willingness to
enter into negotiations with Austria and the other par-
ticipators in that Treaty for the abrogation thereof.
In like manner, the High Contracting Parties reserve to
themselves to enter into a negotiation as soon as possible
for the Revision of the Commercial and Customs Treaty
TREATY OF PRAGUE, 1866 255
of the nth April, 1865, for the further facilitation of their
reciprocal traffic. Meanwhile the said Treaty shall again
come into force, on the condition that each of the High
Contracting Parties reserves the right of putting an end
to its operation after 6 months' notice.
ARTICLE XIV. The Ratifications of the present Treaty
shall be exchanged at Prague within the space of 8 days,
or sooner if possible.
In witness whereof the respective Plenipotentiaries have
signed the present Treaty, and have affixed to it the Seals
of their Arms.
Done at Prague, on the 23rd day of the month of August,
in the year of Salvation, 1866.
(L.S.) BRENNER. (L.S.) WERTHER.
CHAPTER IX
THE GRAND DUCHY OF LUXEMBURG
The Grand Duchy of Luxemburg — The Revolution of 1830 —
Dissolution of the Germanic Confederation — Crisis of 1 866 — The
Treaty of London, 1 867 — Lord Derby on a Collective Guarantee —
Foreign opinion — Obligations of Luxemburg — The War of
1870 — End of the Dutch connexion — The War of 1914.
Text i The Treaty of London (1867).
THE Grand Duchy of Luxemburg is to be dated only
from the year 1815, when it was created by the Congress
of Vienna. The King of the Netherlands was made Grand
Duke, as a compensation for the loss of the German terri-
tories of the House of Orange-Nassau, which Prussia had
been allowed to annex.
Originally a feudal County, within the Mediaeval Empire,
Luxemburg at the end of the Middle Ages was part of the
dominions of the House of Burgundy. Subsequently, along
with the greater part of the Burgundian dominions, includ-
ing the Netherlands, it passed to the House of Habsburg,
through the marriage (in 1477) of Maximilian I to Mary the
daughter of Duke Charles the Bold. The Spanish branch
of the House of Habsburg held Luxemburg with the
' Spanish Netherlands ' from 1556 till 1713, when under
the Peace of Utrecht it passed to Austria. During the
French Revolutionary Wars Luxemburg was taken from
Austria by France. At the Vienna Settlement in 1815 it
was not restored to Austria, but, as has already been
explained, was erected into a Grand Duchy, with the
Dutch King as Grand Duke.
The Grand Duchy, like Belgium, felt the revolutionary
THE CRISIS OF 1866 257
influences which were started by the Revolution of July
1830 in Paris. Luxemburg joined Belgium in throwing off
the Dutch control. The Powers, by the Treaty of London,
November 15, 1831, partitioned Luxemburg in two ; the
western and larger portion was to be incorporated in the
new Kingdom of Belgium ; the rest, with the city of Luxem-
burg itself, was to continue the Grand Duchy under the
King of the Netherlands. Both the Belgians and the
Grand Duke were dissatisfied with this arrangement, and
it was not till 1839 that the agreement was carried into
effect (Treaty of London, April 19, 1839 ; see p. 135).
From 1839 till 1866 the Grand Duchy remained undis-
turbed. The reason for its existence in international law
was to prevent any aggression of France against Prussia
and the North German States. For in 1815, when the
Grand Duchy was created, it was France that Europe
feared. As the Grand Duchy was not strong enough to
defend itself, the city of Luxemburg was fortified, and
was garrisoned by Prussia.1 The Grand Duchy belonged
to the Germanic Confederation.
In 1866, however, as a consequence of the war between
Austria and Prussia, the German Confederation was dis-
solved (Treaty of Prague, August 23, 1866 ; see p. 248).
The North German Confederation, under the headship
of Prussia with Austria excluded, came into existence.
Luxemburg was not part of the new Confederation, and
seemed about to gravitate towards France. Napoleon III
held that if Luxemburg in 1815 had been needed as a buffer
for Germany against France, it was now needed as a buffer
for France against Germany. Negotiations were accord-
ingly opened between the Grand Duke and the French
Emperor for the sale of Luxemburg to France. Prussia
was cognizant of this movement, and proposed to prevent
it by war. The cloud of a fearful war between the two
1 Treaty of Frankfort, July 20, 1819 ; see Hertslet, vol. i, p. 251,
note.
1903
258 THE GRAND DUCHY OF LUXEMBURG
greatest States of the Continent hung over Europe. The
British Government worked to avert this, and proposed the
meeting of a Conference, the wholesome means by which,
from 1815 till 1914, the calamities of war have been many
times averted. In the Conference, which took place at
London, Great Britain, Austria, Belgium, France, Italy,
the Netherlands, Prussia, and Russia, concluded the Treaty
of May n, 1867, which denned anew the position of
Luxemburg in international law.
The treaty recognized Luxemburg as a perpetually
neutral State. The High Contracting Parties specially
put it upon record in Article II, that they ' engage to
respect the principle of neutrality ', and that they ' placed
it under the sanction of the collective Guarantee of the
Powers signing Parties to the present Treaty, with the
exception of Belgium '.
This guarantee differed from that given to Belgium in
two important respects. In the first place, it was a collec-
tive guarantee, whereas that given to Belgium has always
been held to be individual. When the Luxemburg Treaty
was concluded, the Earl of Derby, then Prime Minister,
explained that ' a collective guarantee is one which is
binding on all the parties collectively ; but [of] which, if
any difference of opinion should arise, no one of them can
be called upon to take upon itself the task of vindication
by force of arms '-1 The guarantee might therefore prove
valueless, if one of the signing parties chose to disregard it.
The second difference was that although Luxemburg, like
Belgium, was bound by treaty to observe neutrality towards
all other States, yet she was not bound to defend that neutra-
lity by force of arms. In effect she was forbidden actively
to defend her neutrality, by the terms of Article III, which
forbade her to maintain any fortified places or military
forces. The Prussian garrison, of course, had to evacuate
1 Hansard, July 4, 1867.
OBLIGATIONS OF LUXEMBURG 259
the city of Luxemburg, and the fortifications were dis-
mantled.
During the Franco-Prussian War, 1870-1, the Prussian
Government paid great attention to the neutrality of
Luxemburg. It was alleged that the Luxemburg railways
had been used for passing French soldiers from Metz
through the State, and for forwarding provisions to Thion-
ville. Bismarck accordingly notified the signatories of the
Treaty of 1867 that the King of Prussia could no longer
hold himself bound to observe the neutrality of Luxemburg.
Papers were then exchanged between Earl Granville and
the Prussian Government on this subject. Eventually the
overwhelming military successes of Prussia in France
made any action of Bismarck with regard to Luxemburg
unnecessary from a military point of view. If, as he con-
tended, France had violated Luxemburg neutrality, Prussia
would, of course, have been justified in considering herself
free to treat the Grand Duchy as no longer neutralized
with regard to the war then being waged. In conclu-
sion, on January 20, 1871, Bismarck notified the British
Government that the King of Prussia had no intention of
denouncing the Treaty of 1867, and so the affair ended.1
The Dutch branch of the House of Orange-Nassau came
to an end in the male line in 1890, on the death of King
William III of the Netherlands. The Grand Duchy,
unlike the kingdom, was bound by the Salic Law, and
accordingly passed to the branch of the Dukes of Nassau.
The neutrality of the Grand Duchy was unbroken till the
outbreak of the European War. On August 2, 1914, the
German forces entered Luxemburg ; the Imperial Govern-
ment alleged that French forces had already committed
hostile acts within the Grand Duchy.
1 Parliamentary Papers, 1871 ; Mowat, Select Treaties, pp. 44-8.
& 2
260 THE GRAND DUCHY OF LUXEMBURG
TREATY BETWEEN GREAT BRITAIN, AUSTRIA, BELGIUM,
FRANCE, ITALY, THE NETHERLANDS, PRUSSIA, AND
RUSSIA, RELATIVE TO THE GRAND DUCHY OF LUXEM-
BURG AND THE DUCHY OF LlMBURG. SIGNED AT
LONDON, IITH MAY, iSGy.1
ARTICLE I. His Majesty the King of the Netherlands,
Grand Duke of Luxemburg, maintains the ties which attach
the said Grand Duchy to the House of Orange-Nassau, in
virtue of the Treaties which placed that State under the
Sovereignty of the King Grand Duke, his descendants and
successors.
The Rights which the Agnates of the House of Nassau
possess with regard to the Succession of the Grand Duchy,
in virtue of the same Treaties, are maintained.
The High Contracting Parties accept the present Declara-
tion, and place it upon record.
ARTICLE II. The Grand Duchy of Luxemburg, within
the Limits determined by the Act annexed to the Treaties
of the igth April, 1839, under the Guarantee of the Courts
of Great Britain, Austria, France, Prussia, and Russia,
shall henceforth form a perpetually Neutral State.
It shall be bound to observe the same Neutrality towards
all other States.
The High Contracting Parties engage to respect the
principle of Neutrality stipulated by the present Article.
That principle is and remains placed under the sanction
of the collective Guarantee of the Powers signing Parties
to the present Treaty, with the exception of Belgium,
which is itself a Neutral State.
ARTICLE III. The Grand Duchy of Luxemburg being
Neutralized, according to the terms of the preceding Article,
the maintenance or establishment of Fortresses upon its
Territory becomes without necessity as well as without
object.
In consequence, it is agreed by common consent that the
City of Luxemburg, considered in time past, in a military
point of view, as a Federal Fortress, shall cease to be
a fortified city.
His Majesty the King Grand Duke reserves to himself
to maintain in that city the number of troops necessary
to provide in it for the maintenance of good order.
1 State Papers, vol. Ivii, p. 32 ; Hertslet, vol. iii, No. 405.
TREATY OF LONDON, 1867 261
ARTICLE IV. In conformity with the stipulations con-
tained in Articles II and III, His Majesty the King of
Prussia declares that his troops actually in garrison in the
Fortress of Luxemburg shall receive orders to proceed to
the Evacuation of that place immediately after the ex-
change of the Ratifications of the present Treaty. The
withdrawal of the artillery, munitions, and every object
which forms part of the equipment of the said Fortress
shall commence simultaneously. During that operation
there shall remain in it no more than the number of troops
necessary to provide for the safety of the material of war,
and to effect the dispatch thereof, which shall be completed
within the shortest time possible.
ARTICLE V. His Majesty the King Grand Duke, in virtue
of the rights of Sovereignty which he exercises over the
City and Fortress of Luxemburg, engages, on his part, to
take the necessary measures for converting the said Fortress
into an open city by means of a demolition which His
Majesty shall deem sufficient to fulfil the intentions of the
High Contracting Parties expressed in Article III of the
present Treaty. The works requisite for that purpose
shall be commenced immediately after the withdrawal of
the garrison. They shall be carried out with all the atten-
tion required for the interests of the inhabitants of the city.
His Majesty the King Grand Duke promises, moreover,
that the Fortifications of the city of Luxemburg shall not
be restored in future, and that no Military Establishment
shall be there maintained or created.
ARTICLE VI. The Powers signing Parties to the present
Treaty recognize that the Dissolution of the Germanic
Confederation having equally produced the Dissolution of
the ties which united the Duchy of Limburg, collectively
with the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg, to the said Confedera-
tion, it results therefrom that the relations, of which
mention is made in Articles III, IV, and V of the Treaty
of the igth April, 1839, between the Grand Duchy and
certain Territories belonging to the Duchy of Limburg,
have ceased to exist, the said Territories continuing to
form an integral part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
ARTICLE VII. The present Treaty shall be ratified, and
the Ratifications shall be exchanged at London within the
space of 4 weeks, or sooner if possible.
In witness whereof the respective Plenipotentiaries have
262 THE GRAND DUCHY OF LUXEMBURG
signed the same, and have affixed thereto the Seals of their
Arms.
Done at London, the nth day of May, in the year of
Our Lord, 1867.
(L.S.)
(L.S.)
(L.S.)
(L.S.)
(L.S.
(L.S.
(L.S.
(L.S.
(L.S.
(L.S.)
STANLEY.
APPONYI.
VAN DE WEYER.
LA TOUR D'AUVERGNE.
D'AZEGLIO.
BENTINCK.
TORNACO.
E. SERVAIS.
BERNSTORFF.
BRUNNOW.
CHAPTER X
THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
France and Prussia, 1866 — Bismarck on the prospect of War —
Grand Duchy of Luxemburg — The Hohenzollern candidature
for Spanish Throne — Due de Gramont's views — Attitude of
the King of Prussia — Withdrawal of Hohenzollern candidature —
Demand of French Government — Refusal of Bismarck — Ems
Telegram — Protocol of Paris (1856) — Neutrality of Belgium —
War, 1870-1 — Proclamation of German Empire — Preliminaries
of Versailles — Treaty of Frankfort — Constitution of the German
Empire — Outcome of Franco-German War.
Texts: The Preliminaries of Versailles (1871) — The Treaty of
Frankfort (1871) — The Constitution of the German Empire.
IT has already been related, in a previous chapter, that
after the conclusion of the Austro-Prussian Convention at
Gastein in 1865, Count Bismarck, in view of the practical
certainty of war with Austria in the near future, approached
the Emperor of the French for the purpose of obtaining his'
concurrence in a projected alliance between Prussia and
Italy, to become operative on the outbreak of such a war.
Bismarck and the Emperor Napoleon III met at Biarritz
in September 1865. Their negotiations, or conversations,
took place without witnesses, and the precise form which
they assumed is not known. That Napoleon favoured the
acquisition of Venetia by Italy is undeniable, but that he
fell in with Bismarck's proposals without a promise of
compensation, real or implied, may well be doubted.
Whatever impression Bismarck may have left upon his
mind, the fact remains that on the conclusion of peace
between Austria and Prussia in 1866, no benefits accrued
to France if we except the prestige conferred upon the
Emperor by his assumption of the r61e of mediator in
arranging the terms of that peace. It is not surprising that
264 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
an ever-increasing jealousy of the growing power of Prussia
supervened.
Bismarck, in his Reminiscences, says, ' It was already
quite clear to me that we should have to defend theconquests
of the campaign in future wars, just as Frederick the Great
had to defend the results of his two first Silesian Wars in
the fiercer fire of the Seven Years' War. That a war with
France would succeed that with Austria lay in the logic of
history '. l
Prussia proceeded with her task of the unification of
Germany by the formation of the North German Confedera-
tion, by treaties of alliance with the Southern German
States, and by the placing of all military power in the
hands of the Prussian monarch (see p. 250). It was the
general opinion that a war with France was only a question
of time. In 1867 the question of Luxemburg for a while
threatened the peace of Europe, when France and Prussia
held divergent views about the future of the Grand Duchy,
but the danger of war was averted by means of a Con-
ference of the Powers at London, where a treaty was signed
in which the neutrality of Luxemburg was guaranteed.2
In the winter of 1868-9 Count von Moltke elaborated
a complete scheme of action for the contingency of an
invasion of France. Peace was, however, maintained
until the year 1870, when General Prim, the head of the
provisional Government in Spain, suddenly and without
notice to other foreign States (England and France, at
any rate, were not previously informed), offered the then
vacant throne of Spain to Prince Leopold of Hohenzollern-
Sigmaringen, who accepted it.
The news of this event reached Paris and London on
July 5, 1870. The Due de Gramont immediately informed
the Prussian ambassador at Paris, in plain language, that
France could not tolerate the establishment of any Prussian
1 Bismarck, Reflections and Reminiscences (trans. Butler), chap. xx.
2 State Papers, vol. Ivii, p. 32 ; see above, pp. 257 ft.
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266 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
Prince upon the Spanish throne ; and a statement to the
same effect was made by the Duke in the Corps Legislatif.
I rise to reply to the interpellation addressed to me
yesterday by M. Cochery. It is true that Marshal Prim
has offered the crown of Spain to Prince Leopold of Hohen-
zollern and that the latter has accepted it. But the Spanish
people have not as yet pronounced their views upon the
matter, nor are we at present aware of the true details
of a negotiation of which we have been kept in ignorance.
An immediate discussion could not therefore lead to any
practical result. We beg you, Gentlemen, to postpone it.
We have never ceased to demonstrate our sympathy with
the Spanish nation, and to avoid everything in the nature
of an interference in the internal affairs of a great and noble
nation in full exercise of its sovereignty ; we have not
deviated from a course of the strictest neutrality with regard
to the various aspirants to the throne and we have never
shown for any of them either preference or aversion. We
shall persevere in this line of conduct. But we do not
believe that our respect for the rights of a neighbouring
people obliges- us to permit a Foreign Power, by placing
one of her Princes upon the throne of Charles V, to disturb
to our detriment the existing equilibrium of the forces
of Europe, and to endanger the interests and the honour of
France. We have a firm hope that this eventuality will
not be realised. To prevent it we rely equally upon the
wisdom of the German people and upon the friendship of
those of Spain. If it were otherwise, strong in your support,
Gentlemen, and in that of the Nation, we should know ho .v
to fulfil our duty without hesitation and without weakness.1
On July 6 the French ambassador in London appealed
to the British Government to exercise all their influence
upon Prussia and upon Spain in order to put a stop to the
projected installation of the Prince on the Spanish throne.
Lord Granville accordingly addressed strong but friendly
representations both to Prussia and to Spain, urging them
for the sake of the general welfare to consider the possible
consequences of an adherence to the proposed arrangement.
Lord Lyons reported from Paris on the indignation of the
1 State Papers, vol. Ix, pp. 788-9.
DUG DE GRAMONT'S VIEWS 267
French people at what they could only regard as an insult
and a challenge from Prussia, adding, however, that he
did not believe that either the Emperor or his Ministers
either wished for war or expected it. The Due de Gramont,
in discussing the question with the ambassador, urged that
it was not only the pride of France which was concerned,
but also that her military power was at stake. ' What ',
he observed, ' had been the result of placing the brother
of Prince Leopold at the head of the Government of
Roumania ? He had immediately begun to collect arms,
to form an army, and obeying in all points the instructions
he received from Berlin, to prepare a Prussian arsenal to
be used in case of war between Prussia and Austria. What
had been done there on a small scale would be done on
a great scale in Spain. The Prince of Hohenzollern would
make himself a military sovereign and would get ready
the means of paralysing 200,000 French troops if France
should be engaged in war in Europe. It would be madness
to wait until this was accomplished.' He trusted much to
the aid of the British Government in avoiding war.1
The German ambassador informed Lord Granville that
the King of Prussia was a stranger to the negotiations with
Prince Leopold, but that he would not forbid the Prince to
accept the crown of Spain. On the other hand, the Due
de Gramont stated that he had reason to know, and indeed
the Spanish Minister did not deny it, that the King of
Prussia had been cognizant of the negotiations between
Prim and the Prince of Hohenzollern throughout.2
The King of Prussia himself admitted that he had given
his consent to the Hohenzollern candidature, and stated
that having given it, it would be difficult to withdraw it.
The candidature of Prince Leopold was, in view of the
threatening attitude of affairs, withdrawn by his father
in his name, and it was at first hoped that by this action
the difficulties which had arisen would be removed. It
1 Slate Papers, vol. Ix, pp. 784-94. * Ibid., pp. 796, 799.
268 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
was argued, however, by France that this was not sufficient,
and that some guarantee should be given by Prussia that
Prince Leopold's candidature would not be revived. Lord
Granville, thereupon, whilst regretting that France was
unable to accept the mere withdrawal as a sufficient con-
cession, submitted a memorandum for communication to
the King of Prussia recommending that as the King had
consented to the acceptance by Prince Leopold of the
throne of Spain, and had thereby in a certain sense become
a party to the arrangement, His Majesty might with
perfect dignity communicate to the French Government
his consent to the withdrawal of that acceptance, in the
event of France waiving her demand for an engagement
covering the future. Count Bismarck replied by telegraph
(on the i4th or i5th July) that he regretted that Her
Majesty's Government should have made a proposal
which it would be impossible for him to recommend to the
King for his acceptance, and he went on to allude to the
question of the succession, as he had previously done, as
a private matter in which Prussia was not concerned.1
A letter of July 10, 1870, from King William of Prussia to
King Charles of Roumania shows that the Prussian Govern-
ment knew and approved of the Hohenzollern candidature
for the Spanish throne,2 and there is no doubt that Bismarck
made use of it for the furtherance of his political aims.
The history of the ' Ems telegram ' is instructive on this
point, as told by Bismarck and Busch.
It appears that von Roon, the Prussian War Minister,
and Moltke were dining with Bismarck on July 13 (1870).
In the course of the repast intelligence arrived from the
Prussian Embassy at Paris to the effect that the Prince of
Hohenzollern had renounced the Spanish throne in order
to prevent the war with which France threatened Prussia.
Bismarck says, ' My first idea was to retire from the
1 State Papers, vol. Ix, p. 826.
* See Aus dem Leben Konig Karls von Rumanien. (Stuttgart,
1894.) Band II, 101. Letter dated 28 June/io July 1870.
EMS TELEGRAM 269
service because after all the national challenges which
had gone before I perceived in this extorted submission a
humiliation to Germany, for which I did not desire to be
responsible '. (A threat to retire had more than once been
resorted to by that statesman as an expedient for the
attainment of his ends.) Following on this intelligence
came a long telegram of about 200 words from King
William, who was then at Ems, detailing his communica-
tions with the French ambassador Benedetti as forming
part of a negotiation still pending on the Hohenzollern
question. Moltke was in despair. ' It looked ', says
Bismarck, ' as if Our Most Gracious might knuckle under
after all. . . . Seating myself at a small table I boiled down
those 200 words to about twenty, but without otherwise
altering or adding anything.' The reduced telegram stated,
in terms so brief as to convey the impression of an actual
insult, that the King had refused to see Benedetti, and had
informed him by an aide-de-camp that he had nothing
more to communicate to him. Moltke said, ' Now it has
a different ring. It sounded before like a parley, now it
sounds like a flourish in answer to a challenge.' The
reduced telegram was officially published at Berlin and sent
to the different Embassies in Europe. It so excited the
French Government and people that war resulted in the
course of a couple of days.
' Thus ', says a commentator, ' the war was the deliberate
work of a small group of conspirators holding the highest
positions in the Prussian Empire, whose action on this
occasion rendered it inevitable.' l
1 Nineteenth Century, August 1916. The original telegram was
actually from Herr Abeken and was as follows : ' His Majesty writes
to me : " Count Benedetti spoke to me on the promenade, in order
to demand from me, finally in a very importunate manner, that
I should authorise him to telegraph at once that I bound myself
for all future time never again to give my consent if the Hohen-
zollerns should renew their candidature. I refused at last somewhat
sternly, as it is neither right nor possible to undertake engagements
of this kind d, tout jamais. Naturally I told him that I had as yet
received no news, and as he was earlier informed about Paris and
Madrid than myself, he could clearly see that my government
270 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
It may, at any rate, be maintained that the responsibility
for the war did not rest entirely on France.
The efforts of the British Government to preserve peace
were continued until the last moment, an appeal being
made to the 23rd Protocol of the Paris Congress (1856)
relative to recourse being had to the good offices of a
friendly Power before proceeding to extremities, but no
success resulted.
On the eve of the declaration of war the French Govern-
ment spontaneously declared their determination to respect
the neutrality of Belgium.1 The Prussian Government also
intimated to the Netherlands Minister at Berlin that ' as
regards Belgium and Luxemburg, the neutrality of both
countries was guaranteed by Treaty, and it would be
scrupulously respected by Prussia '.z
Nevertheless, the British Government deemed it desirable
to emphasize the fact of the neutrality of Belgium by
means of a separate treaty with each of the belligerents,
indicating the course which Great Britain was prepared to
once more had no hand in the matter." His Majesty has since
received a letter from the Prince. His Majesty having told Count
Benedetti that he was awaiting news from the Prince, has decided,
with reference to the above demand, upon the representation of
Count Eulenburg and myself, not to receive Count Benedetti again,
but only to let him be informed through an aide-de-camp : That
his Majesty had now received from the Prince confirmation of the
news which Benedetti had already received from Paris, and had
nothing further to say to the ambassador. His Majesty leaves it
to your Excellency whether Benedetti's fresh demand and its
rejection should not be at once communicated both to our ambassa-
dors and to the press.' The telegram, as reduced and given to the
Press by Bismarck, ran as follows : ' After the news of the renuncia-
tion of the hereditary Prince of Hohenzollein had been officially
communicated to the imperial government of France by the royal
government of Spain, the French ambassador at Ems further de-
manded of his Majesty the King that he would authorise him to
telegraph to Paris that his Majesty the King bound himself for all
future time never again to give his consent if the Hohenzollerns
should renew their candidature. His Majesty the King thereupon
decided not to receive the French ambassador again, and sent to
tell him through the aide-de-camp on duty that his Majesty had
nothing further to communicate to the ambassador.' — Bismarck,
Reflections and Reminiscences, chap xxii.
» State Papers, vol. Ix, p. 870. a Ibid., vol. Ix, p. 860.
WAR DECLARED 271
follow in the event of the disregard of that neutrality by
either of them. Their proposal to this effect having been
accepted by France and Prussia, a treaty with each was
duly signed, • that with Prussia bearing date August 9,
and that with France August n, iSyo.1 It was declared
that these treaties should remain in force until one year
after the ratification of a Treaty of Peace between the
belligerents, and on the expiration of that time the inde-
pendence and neutrality of Belgium would, so far as the con-
tracting parties were concerned, continue to rest, as in the
past, on Article I of the Quintuple Treaty of April 19, i83g.2
War was declared by France on July 19, iSyo.3
On September 2 the Emperor of the French surrendered,
with his army, to the King of Prussia at Sedan ; a Govern-
ment of National Defence was set up at Paris ; Paris was
invested and bombarded by the Germans. It capitulated
in January 1871. On the 28th of the same month a conven-
tion of armistice was concluded at Versailles.4
A Preliminary Treaty of Peace between France and
Germany was signed at Versailles on February 26, 1871. 5
The King of Prussia had previously (on January 18)
been proclaimed German Emperor by the sovereigns of
Germany and the chiefs of the army assembled in the Hall
of Mirrors at Versailles.
By Article I of the Preliminaries the new boundaries
between France and Germany, consequent on the cession
of Alsace and Lorraine by France, were laid down. It was
agreed that these boundaries should be traced on the spot
by an international commission.
Article II stated the indemnity to be paid by France
and the mode of payment. (See also Article III.)
1 State Papers, vol. Ix, pp. 10, 13. » Ibid., vol. xxvii, p. 1000.
Ibid., vol. Ix, p. 907. « Ibid., vol. Ixii, p. 49.
4 Ibid., vol. Ixii, p. 59. The Documents relating to the causes of
the War of 1870-1 have been issued in ten volumes by the French
Government — Les On'gines diplomatique^ de la Guerre de 1870-1871
(Paris, 1910-14).
272 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
The remaining Articles dealt with the evacuation of
French territory, inhabitants of ceded territories, prisoners
of war, negotiations for definitive treaty, administration
of occupied territories, taxes, &c.
Bavaria, Wurtemberg, and Baden acceded to this Treaty
on the day of its signature.1
The Definitive Treaty of Peace was signed at Frankfort
on May 10, 1871. 2
It contains in Article I a modification of the boundary
laid down in the Preliminary Treaty, and goes on to
provide for the choice of nationality by natives of ceded
territory, and their retention of immovable property ; an
amnesty in respect of action previous to the war ; sur-
render of archives ; reimbursement of certain moneys and
premiums ; navigation of the Moselle and canals ; diocesan
limits ; payment of war indemnity ; conditions of evacua-
tion on payment of instalments ; contributions and taxes
during occupation ; maintenance of troops ; importations
from ceded territories into France ; prisoners of war and
disposition of French troops ; most favoured nation treat-
ment, with the exception of certain States ; renewal of
navigation, railway, and copyright treaties ; French
shipping dues ; property of expelled Germans ; naturaliza-
tion ; restoration of maritime prizes ; canalization of the
Moselle ; treatment of nationals in circumstances arising
from the war ; preservation of soldiers' graves ; additional
stipulations reserved for further negotiations. The last
Article (XVIII) provides for the exchange of ratifications.
Three additional Articles were signed on the same day,
relating to purchase of railways and railway rights, and
rectification of the frontier near Belfort.
Bavaria, Wurtemberg, and Baden acceded to this
treaty on May 15, 1871.
Two additional conventions, dated respectively October 1 2
and December n, relating to customs, renewal of treaties,
1 State Papers, vol. Ixii, p. 63. 2 Ibid., vol. Ixii, p. 77.
CONSTITUTION OF GERMAN EMPIRE 273
&c., were also signed, the first at Berlin, the second at
Frankfort.1
A Constitution for the newly- established German Empire
was promulgated at Berlin on April 16, 1871. 2 The terri-
tory of the Empire (or Confederation) is therein declared
to comprise ' the States of Prussia with Lauenburg, Bavaria,
Saxony, Wurtemberg, Baden, Hesse, Mecklenburg-Schwe-
rin, Saxe- Weimar, Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Oldenburg, Bruns-
wick, Saxe-Meiningen, Saxe-Altenburg, Saxe-Coburg-Gotha,
Anhalt, Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt, Schwarzburg-Sonders-
hausen, Waldeck, Reuss Elder Line, Reuss Younger Line,
Schaumburg-Lippe, Lippe, Lubeck, Bremen, and Hamburg ;.
The Confederation, which was to bear the name of
' German Empire ', was established, according to the
preamble, for the protection of the territory of the Con-
federation and the rights thereof, as well as to care for
the welfare of the German people.
One common nationality was declared to exist for entire
Germany, so that every person belonging to any one of the
Confederated States should be treated in every other of
those States as a born native, with equal rights. Imperial
laws were given precedence over laws of the States. A
Council of the Confederation was formed in which Prussia
had 17 votes (as in the previous Constitution of 1867),
Bavaria 6 votes, Saxony and Wurtemberg 4 votes each,
Baden and Hesse 3 votes each, Mecklenburg-Schwerin and
Oldenburg 2 votes each, and the remaining States I vote
each, making a total of 58 votes. The presidency of the
Confederation was vested in the King of Prussia, ' who
bears the name of German Emperor ', whose attribute it
was to represent the Empire internationally, to declare
war and to conclude peace, to enter into alliances and
other treaties with foreign Powers, and to accredit and to
receive ambassadors. The consent of the Council was
declared necessary for the declaration of war, unless an
1 State Papers, vol. Ixii, pp. 88, 92. • Ibid., vol. Ixi, p. 58.
1903 T
274 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
attack on the territory of the Confederation should have
taken place. One customs and commercial territory for
the whole of Germany was decreed. The Constitution
further dealt with the construction and management of
imperial railways ; with postal and telegraph affairs ;
with the navy (under the command of the Emperor), and
the obligation of the maritime population to serve in it,
while exempt from service in the land forces ; with the
merchant navy ; with the appointment of consuls ; with
universal military service, the strength of the army in
peace, the entire force to form a single army under the
command of the Emperor, &c. ; with the erection of
fortresses ; with the imperial finances, &c. The last
Article of the Constitution (Article LXXVIII) declares
that alterations in the Constitution shall be considered as
rejected if they have fourteen votes in the Council against
them.
The outcome of the Franco-German War thus embraced
a further unification of all Germany (Austria excepted), as
well as an accession of territory in the cession of Alsace and
Lorraine by France, and the payment by France of a huge
war indemnity of 5 milliards of francs.
PRELIMINARY TREATY OF PEACE BETWEEN FRANCE AND
GERMANY. SIGNED AT VERSAILLES, 26TH FEBRUARY,
iSyi.1
ARTICLE I. France renounces in favour of the German
Empire all her Rights and Titles over the Territories
situated on the East of the Frontier hereafter described.
The Line of Demarcation begins at the North-west
Frontier of the Canton of Cattenom, towards the Grand
Duchy of Luxemburg, follows on the South the Western
Frontiers of the Cantons of Cattenom and Thionville,
passes by the Canton of Briey, along the Western Frontiers
of the Communes of Montjois-la-Montagne and Roncourt,
1 French version in State Papers, vol. Ixii, p. 59; Hertslct,
vol. iii, No. 438.
PRELIMINARY TREATY OF 1871 275
as well as the Eastern Frontiers of the Communes of Marie-
aux-Chenes, St. Ail, Habonville, reaches the Frontier of
the Canton de Gooze, which it crosses along the Communal
Frontiers of Vionville, Bouxieres, and Onville, follows the
South-west Frontier, south of the District of Metz, the
Western Frontier of the District of Chateau-Salins, as far
as the Commune of Pettoncourt, taking in the Western
and Southern Frontiers thereof to follow the Crest of the
Mountains between Seille and Moncel, as far as the Frontier
of the District of Sarreburg, to the South of Garde. The
demarcation afterwards coincides with the Frontier of
that District as far as the Commune of Tanconville, reach-
ing the Frontier to the North thereof, from thence it follows
the Crest of the Mountains between the Sources of the
White Sarre and Vezouze, as far as the Frontier of the
Canton of Schirmeck, skirts the Western Frontier of that
Canton, includes the Communes of Saales, Bourg-Bruche,
Colroy-la-Roche, Plaine, Ranrupt, Saulxures, and St.
Blaise-la-Roche of the Canton of Saales, and coincides
with the Western Frontier of the Departments of the
Lower Rhine and the Upper Rhine as far as the Canton
of Belfort, the Southern Frontier of which it leaves not
far from Vourvenans, to cross the Canton of Delle at the
Southern Limits of the Communes of Bourogne and Froide
Fontaine, and to reach the Swiss Frontier skirting the
Eastern Frontiers of the Communes of Jonchery and Delle.
The German Empire shall possess these Territories in
perpetuity in all Sovereignty and Property. An Inter-
national Commission, composed of an equal number of
Representatives of the two High Contracting Parties, shall
be appointed immediately after the exchange of the
Ratifications of the present Treaty, to trace on the spot
the new Frontier, in conformity with the preceding stipula-
tions.
This Commission shall preside over the Division of the
Lands and Funds, which have hitherto belonged to Districts
or Communes divided by the new Frontiers ; in case of
disagreement in the tracing and the measures of execution,
the Members of the Commission shall refer to their respec-
tive Governments.
The Frontier, such as it has just been described, is marked
in green on two identic copies of the Map of the Territory
forming the Government of Alsace, published at Berlin in
T 2
276 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
September 1870, by the Geographical and Statistical
Division of the Staff, and a copy of which shall be annexed
to both copies of the present Treaty.
Nevertheless, the alteration of the above tracing has
been agreed to by the two Contracting Parties. In the
former Department of the Moselle, the Villages of Marie-
aux-Ch6nes near St. Privat-la-Montagne, and Vionville to
the west of Rezonville, shall be ceded to Germany. In
exchange thereof, France shall retain the Town and Fortifi-
cations of Belfort, with a Radius which shall be hereafter
determined upon.
ARTICLE II. France shall pay to His Majesty the
Emperor of Germany the sum of 5,000,000,000 Francs
(5 milliards).
The Payment of at least 1,000,000,000 (one milliard)
Francs shall be effected within the year 1871, and the whole
of the remainder of the Debt in the space of 3 years, dating
from the Ratification of the present Treaty.
ARTICLE III. The Evacuation of the French Territory
occupied by German Troops shall begin after the Ratifica-
tion of the present Treaty by the National Assembly sitting
at Bordeaux. Immediately after that Ratification, the
German Troops shall quit the interior of Paris, as well as the
Forts on the Left Bank of the Seine, and within the shortest
possible delay agreed upon between the military authorities
of the two Countries, they shall entirely evacuate the
Departments of Calvados, Orne, Sarthe, Eure-et-Loire,
Loiret, Loire-et-Cher, Indre-et-Loire, Yonne, and also the
Departments of the Seine Inf6rieure, Eure, Seine-et-Oise,
Seine-et-Marne, Aube, and C6te d'Or, as far as the Left
Bank of the Seine. The French troops shall fall back at
the same time behind the Loire, which they shall not be
allowed to pass before the signature of the Definitive
Treaty of Peace. The Garrison of Paris is excepted from
this disposition, the number of which shall not exceed
40,000 men, and the Garrisons indispensably necessary for
the safety of the strongholds.
The Evacuation of the Departments between the Right
Bank of the Seine and the Eastern Frontier by German
Troops shall take place gradually after the Ratification
of the Definitive Treaty of Peace and the payment of the
first 500,000,000 (half milliard) of the contribution stipu-
lated by Article II, beginning with the Departments nearest
PRELIMINARY TREATY OF 1871 277
to Paris, and shall continue gradually, according to the
proportion of the Payments made on account of the Con-
tribution ; after the first Payment of a 500,000,000 (half
milliard) that Evacuation shall take place in the following
Departments : Somme, Oise, and the parts of the Depart-
ments of the Seine Inferieure, Seine-et-Oise, Seine-et-Marne,
situated on the Right Bank of the Seine, as well as the
part of the Department of the Seine, and the Forts situated
on the Right Bank.
After the payment of 2,000,000,000 (two milliards), the
German occupation shall only include the Departments of
the Marne, Ardennes, Haute Marne,Meuse, Vosges, Meurthe,
as well as the Fortress of Belfort, with its Territory, which
shall serve as a pledge for the remaining 3,000,000,000
(3 milliards), and in which the number of the German
Troops shall not exceed 50,000 men. His Majesty the
Emperor will be willing to substitute for the Territorial
Guarantee, consisting in the partial occupation of the
French Territory, a Financial Guarantee, should it be
offered by the French Government under conditions con-
sidered sufficient by His Majesty the Emperor and King
for the interests of Germany. The 3,000,000,000 (3 mil-
liards), the payment of which shall have been deferred,
shall bear Interest at the rate of 5 per cent., beginning
from the Ratification of the present Convention.
ARTICLE IV. The German Troops shall abstain from
levying contributions either in money or in kind in the
occupied Departments. On the other hand, the mainten-
ance of the German Troops remaining in France shall be
at the expense of the French Government in the manner
decided upon by an Agreement with the German Military
Administration.
ARTICLE V. The interests of the Inhabitants of the
Territories ceded by France, in everything relating to their
Commerce and their Civil Rights shall be regulated in as
favourable a manner as possible when the conditions of
the Definitive Peace are settled. A certain time will be
fixed, during which they will enjoy particular advantages
for the disposal of their produce. The German Government
will put no obstacle in the way of Free Emigration by the
Inhabitants from the ceded Territories, and shall take no
steps against them affecting their Persons or their Property.
ARTICLE VI. The Prisoners of War who shall not have
278 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
been already set at liberty by exchange shall be given up
immediately after the Ratification of the present Pre-
liminaries. In order to accelerate the transport of French
Prisoners, the French Government shall place at the
disposal of the German Authorities in the interior of the
German Territory a part of the rolling-stock of its Railways
in such proportion as shall be determined by special
arrangements, and at prices paid in France by the French
Government for military transport.
• ARTICLE VII. The opening of negotiations for the
Definitive Treaty of Peace to be concluded on the Basis
of the present Preliminaries shall take place at Brussels,
immediately after the Ratification of the latter by the
National Assembly and by His Majesty the Emperor of
Germany.
ARTICLE VIII. After the conclusion and the Ratification
of the Definitive Treaty of Peace, the Administration of
the Departments which are still to remain occupied by the
German Troops shall be made over to the French authori-
ties. But the latter shall be bound to conform to the
orders which the Commanders of the German troops may
think necessary to give in the interests of the safety,
maintenance, and distribution of the Troops.
After the Ratification of the present Treaty, the Taxes
in the occupied Departments shall be levied on account of
the French Government, and by its own Officers.
ARTICLE IX. It is well understood that these stipula-
tions do not give to the German Military Authority any
right over the parts of Territory which it does not actually
occupy.
ARTICLE X. The present Preliminary Treaty shall be
immediately submitted to the Ratification of His Majesty
the Emperor of Germany and to the French National
Assembly sitting at Bordeaux.
In testimony whereof the Undersigned have signed the
present Preliminary Treaty, and sealed it with the Seal
of their Arms.
Done at Versailles, 26th February, 1871.
(L.S.) BISMARCK. (L.S.) A. THIERS.
(L.S.) JULES FAVRE.
DEFINITIVE TREATY OF 1871 279
ACCESSION OF BADEN, BAVARIA, AND WURTEMBERG.
The Kingdoms of Bavaria and Wurtemberg, and the
Grand Duchy of Baden, having taken part in the actual
War as Allies of Prussia, and now forming part of the
Germanic Empire, the Undersigned adhere to the present
Convention in the name of their respective Sovereigns.
Versailles, 26th February, 1871.
CTE. DE BRAY-STEINBURG. MITTNACHT.
BN. DE WACHTER. JOLLY.
DEFINITIVE TREATY OF PEACE BETWEEN FRANCE AND
GERMANY. SIGNED AT FRANKFORT, IOTH MAY, 1871. x
ARTICLE I. The distance between the Town of Belfort
and the Line of Frontier, such as it had been proposed
during the negotiations of Versailles, and such as it is
marked on the Map annexed to the Ratifications of the
Preliminaries of the 26th February, is considered as describ-
ing the Radius which, by virtue of the Clause relating
thereto in Article I of the Preliminaries, is to remain to
France with the Town and Fortifications of Belfort.
The German Government is disposed to extend that
Radius so as to include the Cantons of Belfort, Delle, and
Giromagny, as well as the western part of the Canton of
Fontaine, to the West of a line to be traced from the spot
where the Canal from the Rhone to the Rhine leaves the
Canton of Delle to the South of Montreux-Chateau, to the
Northern Limits of the Canton between Bourg and Felon
where that Line would join the Eastern Limit of the
Canton of Giromagny.
The German Government will, nevertheless, not cede
the above Territories unless the French Republic agrees,
on its part, to a rectification of Frontier along the Western
Limits of the Cantons of Cattenom and Thionville which
will give to Germany the Territory to the East of a Line
starting from the Frontier of Luxemburg between Hussigny
and Redingen, leaving to France the Villages of Thil and
Villerupt, extending between Erronville and Aumetz
between Beuvillers and Boulange, between Trieux and
1 French version in State Papers, vol. Ixii, pp. 77, 83. Hertslet,
vol. iii, No. 446.
280 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
Lomeringen, and joining the ancient Line of Frontier
between Avril and Moyeuvre.
The International Commission, mentioned in Article I
of the Preliminaries, shall proceed to the spot immediately
after the Ratifications of the present Treaty to execute the
Works entrusted to them and to trace the new Frontier,
in accordance with the preceding dispositions.
ARTICLE II. French Subjects, Natives of the ceded
Territories, actually domiciled on that Territory, who shall
preserve their Nationality, shall up to the ist October,
1872, and on their making a previous Declaration to that
effect to the Competent Authority, be allowed to change
their domicile into France and to remain there, that right
in nowise infringing on the Laws on Military Service, in
which case the title of French Citizen shall be maintained.
They shall be at liberty to preserve their Immovables
situated in the Territory united to Germany.
No Inhabitant of the ceded Territory shall be prosecuted,
annoyed, or sought for, either in his person or his property,
on account of his Political or Military Acts previous to the
War.
ARTICLE III. The French Government shall deliver over
to the German Government the Archives, Documents, and
Registers relating to the Civil, Military, and Judicial
Administration of the ceded Territories. Should any of the
Documents be found missing, they shall be restored by
the French Government on the demand of the German
Government.
ARTICLE IV. The French Government shall make over
to the Government of the Empire of Germany within the
term of 6 Months dating from the exchange of the Ratifica-
tions of this Treaty : I. The amount of the sum deposited
by the Departments, Communes, and Public Establish-
ments of the ceded Territories. 2. The amount of the
premium of Enlistment and Discharge belonging to
Soldiers and Sailors natives of the ceded Territory who
shall have chosen the German Nationality. 3. The Amount
of Security of responsible Agents of the State. 4. The
Amount of Sums deposited for Judicial Consignments on
account of measures taken by the Administrative or
Judicial Authorities in the ceded Territories.
ARTICLE V. The two Nations shall enjoy equal privileges
as far as regards the Navigation on the Moselle, the Canal
DEFINITIVE TREATY OF 1871 281
of the Marne to the Rhine, the Canal of the Rhone to the
Rhine, the Canal of the Sarre and the Navigable Waters
communicating with those channels of Navigation. The
Right of Floatage shall be maintained.
ARTICLE VI. The High Contracting Parties being of
opinion that the Diocesan circumscriptions of the Terri-
tories ceded to the German Empire must agree with the
new Frontier determined upon by Article I above, will
consider, without delay, after the Ratification of the present
Treaty, upon the measures to be taken in common on the
subject.
The Communities belonging either to the Reformed
Church or to the Augsburg Confession, established on the
Territories ceded by France, shall cease to be under French
Ecclesiastical Authority.
The Communities of the Church of the Augsburg Confes-
sion established in the French Territories shall cease to
be under the Superior Consistories and of the Directors
residing at Strasburg.
The Jewish Communities of the Territories situated to
the East of the new Frontier shall cease to depend on the
Central Jewish Consistory residing at Paris.
ARTICLE VII. The payment of 500,000,000 (| milliard)
shall be made within 30 days after the re-establishment of
the Authority of the French Government in the City of
Paris. 1,000,000,000 (i milliard) shall be paid in the course
of the year, and 500,000,000 (^ milliard) on the ist May,
1872. The last 3,000,000,000 (3 milliards) shall remain
payable on the 2nd March, 1874, as stipulated in the
Preliminary Treaty. From the 2nd March of the present
year the Interest on those 3,000,000,000 francs (3 milliards)
shall be paid each year on the 3rd March, at the rate of
5 per cent, per annum.
All sums paid in advance on the last 3,000,000,000 shall
cease to bear Interest from the day on which the payment
is made.
The payment can only be made in the principal German
Commercial Towns, and shall be made in metal, Gold or
Silver, in Notes of the Bank of England, in Prussian Bank
Notes, in Netherlands Bank Notes, in Notes of the National
Bank of Belgium, in first class Negotiable Bills to Order
or Letters of Exchange, payable at sight.
The German Government having fixed in France the
282 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
value of a Prussian Thaler at 3 francs 75 centimes, the
French Government accepts the conversion of the Moneys
of both Countries at the rate above stated.
The French Government will inform the German Govern-
ment, 3 months in advance, of all payments which it
intends to make into the Treasury of the German
Empire.
After the payment of the first 500,000,000 (£ milliard)
and the Ratification of the Definitive Treaty of Peace, the
Departments of the Somme, Seine Inferieure, and Eure
shall be evacuated in so far as they shall be found to be
still occupied by German Troops. The Evacuation of the
Departments of the Oise, Seine-et-Oise, Seine-et-Marne,
and Seine, as well as the Forts of Paris, shall take place
so soon as the German Government shall consider the re-
establishment of Order, both in France and Paris, sufficient
to ensure the execution of the Engagements contracted
by France.
Under all circumstances, the Evacuation shall take place
after the payment of the third 500,000,000 (£ milliard).
The German Troops, for their own security, shall have
at their disposal the Neutral Zone between che German
line of Demarcation and the Paris enclosure on the Right
Bank of the Seine.
The stipulations of the Treaty of 26th February relative
to the occupation of French Territories after the payment
of the 2,000,000,000 (2 milliards), shall remain in force.
None of the deductions which the French Government
might have a right to make shall be made on the payment
of the first 500,000,000 (-|- milliard).
ARTICLE VIII. German Troops shall continue to abstain
from levying contributions either in kind or money in the
occupied Territories ; that obligation on their part being
correlative to the obligations contracted for their mainten-
ance by the French Government, in case the French Govern-
ment, notwithstanding the reiterated demands of the
German Government, was behindhand in the execution of
the said obligations, the German Troops will have the
right to procure what is necessary to their wants by
levying Taxes and Contributions in the occupied Depart-
ments, and even outside of them, should their resources
not be sufficient.
With reference to the Maintenance of the German Troops,
DEFINITIVE TREATY OF 1871 283
the system actually in force shall be continued until the
Evacuation of the Paris Forts.
In virtue of the Convention of Ferrieres, of nth March,
1871, the reductions pointed out by that Convention shall
be put into force after the Evacuation of the Forts.1
As soon as the effective of the German Army shall be
reduced below the number of 500,000 men, account shall
be taken of the reductions made below that number to
establish a proportionate diminution in the price of the
Maintenance of the Troops paid by the French Government.
ARTICLE IX. The exceptional Treatment at present
granted to the Produce of the Industry of the ceded
Territories for Imports into France, shall be continued for
6 months, from the ist March, under the conditions made
with the Commissioners of Alsace.
ARTICLE X. The German Government shall continue
to deliver up Prisoners of War, making arrangements with
the French Government. The French Government shall
send to their homes such of the Prisoners as can be dis-
charged. As for those who shall not have completed their
term of service, they shall be sent beyond the Loire. It
is understood that the Army of Paris and Versailles, after
the re-'establishment of the authority of the French Govern-
ment at Paris, and until the Evacuation of the Forts by
German Troops, shall not exceed 80,000 men. Until that
Evacuation, the French Government shall not concentrate
Troops on the Right Bank of the Loire, but it shall provide
Garrisons in the Towns within that circuit, according to
the necessities for the maintenance of Public Order and
Peace.
As the Evacuation shall proceed, the Commanders of
Regiments -shall agree together as to a Neutral Circuit
between the Armies of the two Nations.
20,000 Prisoners shall be sent without delay to Lyons
on condition that they are immediately sent to Algiers,
after their organization, to be employed in that Colony.
ARTICLE XI. The Treaties of Commerce with the
different States of Germany having been annulled by the
War, the French Government and the German Govern-
ment will adopt as the basis of their Commercial Relations
1 Convention for the execution of the Preliminaries of Peace :
State Papers, vol. Ixii, p. 65.
284 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
the system of reciprocal Treatment on the footing of the
Most favoured Nation.
Are included therein Import and Export Duties, Transit
Dues, Customs Formalities, the admission and treatment
of both Nations as well as their Agents.
Shall nevertheless be excepted from the above Rule the
favours which one of the Contracting Parties has granted
or may grant, by Treaties of Commerce, to other States
than the following : Great Britain, Belgium, Netherlands,
Switzerland, Austria, Russia.
The Treaties of Navigation as well as the Convention
relative to the International Service of Railways in its
relation with the Customs, and the Convention for the
reciprocal Guarantee of Literary and Artistic Works, shall
be renewed.
The French Government nevertheless reserves to itself
the right of levying Tonnage and Shipping Duties (Droit
de Pavilion) on German Vessels and their Cargoes, under
the reservation that those Duties shall not be higher than
those imposed on Vessels and Cargoes of the above-men-
tioned Nations.
ARTICLE XII. All expelled Germans shall preserve the
full and entire enjoyment of all Property which they may
have acquired in France.
Such Germans who had obtained the authority required
by French Laws to establish their Domicile in France
shall be reinstated in all their Rights, and may conse-
quently again establish their Domicile in French Territory.
The delay stipulated by French Laws to obtain Naturali-
sation shall be considered as not having been interrupted
by the state of War for persons who shall take advantage
of the above-mentioned facility of returning to France
within 6 months after the exchange of the Ratifications
of this Treaty, and the time which has elapsed between
their expulsion and their return to the French Territory
shall be taken into account, as if they had never ceased
to reside in France.
The above conditions shall be applicable in perfect
reciprocity to the French Subjects residing, or wishing to
reside, in Germany.
ARTICLE XIII. German Vessels condemned by Prize
Courts before the 2nd March, 1871, shall be considered as
definitively condemned.
ADDITIONAL ARTICLES 285
Those not condemned at the above-mentioned date shall
be restored with their Cargo in so far as it still exists. If
the restoration of the Vessels and Cargo is no more possible,
their value, fixed according to the price of the sale, shall
be restored to their Owners.
ARTICLE XIV. Each of the two Parties shall continue
on his Territory the Works undertaken for the Canalisa-
tion of the Moselle. The Common Interests of the separate
parts of the two Departments of the Meurthe and the
Moselle shall be liquidated.
ARTICLE XV. The High Contracting Parties mutually
engage to extend to their respective Subjects the measures
which they may consider necessary to adopt in favour of
those of their Subjects who, in consequence of the events
of the War, may have been prevented arriving in time for
the safety or the preservation of their Rights.
ARTICLE XVI. The two Governments, French and
German, reciprocally engage to respect and preserve the
Tombs of Soldiers buried in their respective Territories.
ARTICLE XVII. The Regulation of additional Stipula-
tions upon which an understanding is to be come to in
consequence of this Treaty and the Preliminary Treaty,
will be the object of further Negotiations which shall take
place at Frankfort.
ARTICLE XVIII. The Ratification of the present Treaty
by the National Assembly and by the Chief of the Executive
of the French Republic, on the one part, and on the other
by the Emperor of Germany, shall be exchanged at Frank-
fort, in the delay of 10 days, or sooner if possible.
In faith whereof the respective Plenipotentiaries have
signed it and affixed thereto the Seal of their Arms.
Done at Frankfort, loth May, 1871.
(L.S.) JULES FAVRE. (L.S.) BISMARCK.
(L.S.) POUYER-QUERTIER. (L.S.) ARNIM.
(L.S.) DE GOULARD.
ADDITIONAL ARTICLES.1
ARTICLE I. § i. From this date until the date fixed for
the exchange of the Ratifications of the present Treaty
the French Government shall exercise its right of redemp-
1 Translated from the French as given in State Papers, vol. Ixii,
pp. 83, 84.
286 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
tion of the Concession granted to the Eastern Railway
Company (Compagnie des Chemins de Fer de 1'Est). The
German Government shall be surrogated in respect of all
the rights which the French Government shall have
acquired by the repurchase of the concessions so far as
they concern the railways situated within the ceded
territories whether completed or in course of construction.
§ 2. The following shall be included in this concession :
1. All the lands belonging to the said company, whatever
shall be their purpose, such as establishments fora terminus,
for stations, sheds, workshops and store houses, houses of
keepers of the line, &c.
2. All immovables connected with them, such as gates,
fences, points, turntables, water-tanks, hydraulic cranes,
stationary engines, &c.
3. All materials, combustibles and supplies of all kinds,
furniture of stations, tools of work-shops and stations, &c.
4. Sums of money due to the Eastern Railway Company
by way of subsidy granted by corporations or persons
domiciled within the ceded territories.
§ 3. Rolling-stock is excluded from this concession. The
German Government will give up to the French Govern-
ment that part of the rolling-stock, with its accessories
which shall be found in its possession.
§ 4. The French Government undertakes as towards the
German Empire, entirely to exempt the ceded railways
and their dependances from all rights claimed by third
parties, and particularly those of the Bondholders (Obli-
gataires).
It undertakes equally, should the case arise, to take the
place of the German Government in the matter of any
claims which may be brought against that Government by
any creditors of the railways in question.
§ 5. The French Government will make itself liable for
any claims of the Eastern Railway Company preferred
against the German Government or its Agents on account
of the working of the said railways and for the use of the
objects indicated in the above § 2 and of the rolling-stock.
The German Government will communicate to the French
Government, on its demand, all the documents and all the
information which may serve to establish the facts upon
which the above-mentioned claims may be founded.
§ 6. The German Government will pay to the French
ADDITIONAL ARTICLES 287
Government for the cession of the proprietary rights indi-
cated in §§ i and 2, and as an equivalent for the engagement
taken by the French Government in § 4, the sum of
325,000,000 francs.
This sum shall be deducted from the war indemnity
stipulated for in Article VII. Seeing that the circumstances
which constituted the basis for the Convention concluded
between the Company of the Eastern Railways and the
Royal Grand Ducal Society of the Guillaume-Luxembourg
Railways dated June 6, 1857 and January 21, 1868, and
that concluded between the Government of the Grand
Duchy of Luxembourg and the Societies of the Guillaume-
Luxembourg and the French Eastern Railways of December
5, 1868, have been essentially modified to an extent that
they are not applicable to the state of things created by
the stipulations contained in § i, the German Government
declares itself ready to take over the rights and liabilities
resulting from these Conventions from the Company of
the Eastern Railways.
In case the French Government should acquire (serait
subroge), either by the repurchase of the Concession of
the Eastern Railways Company, or as a consequence of
a special understanding, the rights of that Company in
virtue of the above-mentioned Conventions, it undertakes
to cede those rights to the German Government gratuitously
within the period of six weeks.
In case the above-mentioned acquisition should not be
effected, the French Government will only grant concessions
in respect of the lines of railway belonging to the Eastern
Company and situated within French territory, on the ex-
press condition that the holder of the Concessions shall
not work the railway lines situated in the Grand Duchy of
Luxembourg.
ARTICLE II. The German Government offers 2,000,000
francs for the rights and properties possessed by the Com-
pany of the Eastern Railways on that portion of its system
situated on Swiss territory from the frontier at Bale,
provided that the French Government signifies its consent
within a period of one month.
ARTICLE III. The Cession of Territory near Belfort,
offered by the German Government in Article I of the present
Treaty in exchange for the rectification of the frontier
required to the West of Thionville, shall be increased by the
288 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
Territories of the following Villages : Rougemont, Leval,
Petite-Fontaine, Romagny, Felon, La-Chapelle-sous-Rouge-
mont, Angeot, Vauthier-Mont, Riviere, Grasige, Reppe,
Fontaine, Frais, Foussemagne, Cunelieres, Montreux-
Chateau, Brelagne, Chavannes-les-Grands, Chavanatte, and
Suarce.
The Giromagny and Remiremont Road, thoroughfare to
the Balloon of Alsace, shall remain to France throughout
its whole extent, and shall serve as a Limit in so far as it
is situated outside the Canton of Giromagny.
Done at Frankfort, loth May, 1871.
(L.S.) JULES FAVRE. (L.S.) BISMARCK.
(L.S.) POUYER-QUERTIER. (L.S.) ARNIM.
(L.S.) DE GOULARD.
CONSTITUTION OF THE GERMAN EMPIRE. BERLIN,
i6TH APRIL, iSyi.1
(Translation.)
His Majesty the King of Prussia in the name of the North
German Confederation, His Majesty the King of Bavaria,
His Majesty the King of Wurtemberg, His Royal Highness
the Grand Duke of Baden, and His Royal Highness the
Grand Duke of Hesse and by Rhine, for those parts of the
Grand Duchy of Hesse which are south of the river Main,
conclude an everlasting Confederation for the protection
of the Territory of the Confederation and the rights thereof,
as well as to care for the welfare of the German people.
This Confederation will bear the name ' German Empire ',
and is to have the following
CONSTITUTION.
I. Territory of the Confederation.
ARTICLE I. The Territory of the Confederation is com-
prised of the States of Prussia with Lauenburg, Bavaria,
Saxony, Wurtemberg, Baden, Hesse, Mecklenburg-Schwerin,
Saxe- Weimar, Mecklenburg -Strelitz, Oldenburg, Bruns-
wick, Saxe-Meiningen, Saxe-Altenburg, Saxe-Coburg-Gotha,
Anhalt, Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt, Schwarzburg-Sonders-
hausen, Waldeck, Reuss Elder Line, Reuss Younger Line,
Schaumburg-Lippe, Lippe, Lubeck, Bremen, and Hamburg.
1 From a translation in State Papers, vol. Ixi, p. 58. The Con-
stitution of 1871 was superseded by the Republican Constitution of
Aug. ii, 1919.
CONSTITUTION OF GERMAN EMPIRE 289
II. Legislature of the Empire.
ARTICLE II. Within this Confederate Territory the
Empire exercises the right of legislation according to
the tenor of this Constitution, and with the effect that the
Imperial laws take precedence of the laws of the States.
The Imperial laws receive their binding power by their
publication in the name of the Empire, which takes place
by means of an Imperial Law Gazette. If the date of its
first coming into force is not otherwise fixed in the published
law, it comes into force on the I4th day after the close of
the day on which the part of the Imperial Law Gazette
which contains it is published at Berlin.
ARTICLE III. For entire Germany one common nation-
ality exists with the effect, that every person (subject,
State-citizen) belonging to any one of the Confederated
States is to be treated in every other of the Confederated
States as a born native, and accordingly must be permitted
to have a fixed dwelling, to trade, to be appointed to public
offices, to acquire real estate property, to obtain the rights
of a State-citizen, and to enjoy all other civil rights under
the same presuppositions as the natives, and likewise is to
be treated equally with regard to legal prosecution or legal
protection.
No German may be restricted from the exercise of this
right by the authorities of his own State or by the authorities
of any of the other Confederated States.
Those regulations which have reference to the care of
the poor, and their admission into local parishes are not
affected by the principles set down in the first paragraph.
Until further notice the Treaties likewise remain in force
which have been entered into by the particular States
of the Confederation regarding the reception of persons
expelled, the care of sick persons, and the burial of deceased
persons belonging to the States.
What is needful for the fulfilment of military duty in
regard to the native country will be ordered by the way of
Imperial legislation.
Every German has the same claim to the protection of
the Empire with regard to foreign nations.
ARTICLE IV. The following affairs are subject to the
superintendence and legislation of the Empire :
i. The regulations as to freedom of translocation,
1903
290 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
domicile, and settlement affairs, right of citizenship, pass-
port and police regulations for strangers, and as to transact-
ing business including insurance affairs, in so far as these
objects are not already provided for by Article III of this
Constitution. In Bavaria, however, the domicile and settle-
ment affairs, and likewise the affairs of colonization and
emigration to foreign countries are herefrom excluded ;
2. The customs and commercial legislation, and the
taxes which are to be applied to the requirements of the
Empire ;
3. The regulation of the system of the coinage, weights,
and measures, likewise the establishment of the principles
for the issue of funded and unfunded paper money ;
4. The general regulations as to banking ;
5. The granting of patents for inventions ;
6. The protection of intellectual property ;
7. The organization of the common protection of German
commerce in foreign countries, of German vessels and their
flags at sea, and the arrangement of a common Consular
representation, which is to be salaried by the Empire ;
8. Railway affairs, — excepting in Bavaria the arrange-
ments in Article XLVI, — and the construction of land and
water communications for the defence of the country and
for the general intercourse ;
9. The rafting and navigation affairs on waterways
belonging in common to several of the States, and the
condition of the waterways, and likewise the river or other
water dues ;
10. Postal and telegraph affairs ; in Bavaria and Wur-
temberg, however, only with reference to the provisions
of Article LII ;
11. Regulations as to the reciprocal execution of judg-
ments in civil affairs and the settlement of requisitions in
general ;
12. Likewise as to the verification of public documents ;
13. The general legislation as to obligatory rights, penal
law, commercial and bill-of -exchange laws, and judicial
procedure ;
14. The military and naval affairs of the Empire ;
15. The measures of medicinal and veterinary police ;
16. The regulations for the press and for union societies.
ARTICLE V. The Legislation of the Empire is carried on
by the council of the Confederation and the Imperial Diet.
CONSTITUTION OF GERMAN EMPIRE 291
The accordance of the majority of votes in both Assemblies
is necessary and sufficient for a law of the Empire.
In projects of law on military affairs, on naval affairs,
and on the taxes mentioned in Article XXXV, the President
has the casting vote in cases where there is a difference of
opinion, if his vote is in favour of the maintenance of the
existing arrangements.
III. Council of the Confederation.
ARTICLE VI. The Council of the Confederation consists
of the Representatives of the Members of the Confederation,
amongst which the votes are divided in such a manner
that Prussia has, with the former votes of Hanover, Electoral
Hesse, Holstein, Nassau, and Frankfort,
17 votes.
Bavaria . . . . 6 „
Saxony . . . . . 4 ,,
Wurtemberg . . . . 4 ,,
Baden . . . . . 3
Hesse 3
Mecklenburg-Schwerin . . 2
Saxe- Weimar . . . i
Mecklenburg-Strelitz . . . i
Oldenburg i
Brunswick . . . . .2
Saxe-Meiningen . i
Saxe-Altenburg . . . i
Saxe-Coburg-Gotha . . . i
Anhalt i
Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt . . i
Schwarzburg-Sondershausen . i
Waldeck . . . . . i
Reuss Elder Line . . . i
Reuss Younger Line . . . i
Schaumburg-Lippe . . . i
Lippe ..... i
Lubeck i
Bremen ..... i
Hamburg . . . . . i
u 2
Total 58 votes.
292 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
Each member of the Confederation can nominate as
many Plenipotentiaries to the Council of the Confederation
as it has votes ; but the totality of such votes can only
be given in one sense.
ARTICLE VII. The Council of the Confederation deter-
mines :
1. What Bills are to be brought before the Imperial
Diet, and on the resolutions passed by the same ;
2. As to the administrative measures and arrangements
necessary for the general execution of the Imperial Legisla-
tion, in so far as no other Imperial law has decreed to the
contrary ;
3. As to defects which have made themselves manifest
in the execution of the Imperial laws or the above-mentioned
measures and arrangements.
Every member of the Confederation has the right to
propose Bills and to recommend them, and the Presidency
is bound to bring them under debate.
The decisions take place by simple majority, with the
reservation of the stipulations in the Articles V, XXXVII,
and LXXVIII. Non-represented votes, or votes without
instructions, are not counted. In equal divisions the
Presidential is the casting vote.
In decisions upon affairs, wherein, according to the rules
of this Constitution, the whole Empire has not a common
interest, only the votes of those Confederated States are
counted which are interested in common.
ARTICLE VIII. The Council of the Confederation forms
permanent Committees from its own members ;
1. For the land army and fortresses.
2. For naval affairs.
3. For customs and taxes.
4. For commerce and intercourse.
5. For railways, post, and telegraphs.
6. For affairs of justice.
7. For finances.
In each of these Committees, besides the Presidency, at
least 4 of the Confederated States will be represented, and
in the same each State only has one vote. In the Committee
for the land army and fortresses, Bavaria has a perpetual
seat, the other members thereof, as well as the members
for the Naval Committee, are nominated by the Emperor ;
the members of the other Committees are elected by the
CONSTITUTION OF GERMAN EMPIRE 293
Council of the Confederation. The composition of these
Committees is to be renewed for every session of the
Council of the Confederation or respectively every year,
when the outgoing members may be re-elected.
Besides these in the Council of the Confederation a
Committee for Foreign Affairs will be formed, comprised
of the Representatives of the Kingdoms of Bavaria, Saxony,
and Wurtemberg, and of two other Representatives of
other Confederated States, who will be yearly elected by
the Council of the Confederation, in which Committee
Bavaria will occupy the chair.
The necessary officials will be placed at the disposal of
these Committees.
ARTICLE IX. Every member of the Council of the
Confederation has the right to appear in the Imperial
Diet, and must at his desire at all times be heard, in order
to represent the views of his Government, even when these
views have not been adopted by the majority of the Council
of the Confederation. No one may at the same time be
a member of the Council of the Confederation and of the
Imperial Diet.
ARTICLE X. The Emperor is bound to afford the usual
diplomatic protection to the members of the Council of
the Confederation.
IV. The Presidency.
ARTICLE XI. The Presidency of the Confederation
belongs to the King of Prussia, who bears the name of
German Emperor. The Emperor has to represent the Empire
internationally, to declare war, and to conclude peace in
the name of the Empire, to enter into alliances and other
Treaties with Foreign Powers, to accredit and to receive
Ambassadors.
The consent of the Council of the Confederation is
necessary for the declaration of war in the name of the
Empire, unless an attack on the territory or the coast of
the Confederation has taken place.
In so far as Treaties with Foreign States have reference
to affairs which, according to Article IV, belong to the
jurisdiction of the Imperial Legislation, the consent of
the Council of the Confederation is requisite for their
conclusion, and the sanction of the Imperial Diet for their
coming into force.
294 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
ARTICLE XII. The Emperor has the right to summon,
to open, to prorogue, and to close both the Council of the
Confederation and the Imperial Diet.
ARTICLE XIII. The summoning of the Council of the
Confederation, and of the Imperial Diet, takes place once
each year, and the Council of the Confederation can be
called together for preparation of business without the
Imperial Diet being likewise summoned, whereas the latter
cannot be summoned without the Council of the Confedera-
tion.
ARTICLE XIV. The Council of the Confederation must
be summoned whenever one-third of the votes require it.
ARTICLE XV. The presidency in the Council of the
Confederation and the direction of the business belongs to
the Chancellor of the Empire, who is to be appointed by
the Emperor.
The Chancellor of the Empire can be represented, on his
giving written information thereof, by any other member
of the Council of the Confederation.
ARTICLE XVI. The requisite motions, in accordance with
the votes of the Council of the Confederation will be brought
before the Imperial Diet in the name of the Emperor,
where they will be supported by members of the Council
of the Confederation, or by particular Commissioners
nominated by the latter.
ARTICLE XVII. The expedition and proclamation of
the laws of the Empire, and the care of their execution,
belongs to the Emperor. The Orders and Decrees of the
Emperor are issued in the name of the Empire and require
for their validity the counter-signature of the Chancellor
of the Empire, who thereby undertakes the responsibility.
ARTICLE XVIII. The Emperor nominates the Imperial
officials, causes them to be sworn for the Empire, and,
when necessary, decrees their dismissal.
The officials of any State of the Confederation, when
appointed to any Imperial office, are entitled to the same
rights with respect to the Empire, as they would enjoy
from their official position in their own country, excepting
in such cases as have otherwise been provided for by the
Imperial Legislation before their entrance into the Imperial
service.
ARTICLE XIX. Whenever members of the Confederation
do not fulfil their Constitutional duties towards the Con-
CONSTITUTION OF GERMAN EMPIRE 295
federation, they may be constrained to do so by way of
execution. Such execution must be decreed by the Council
of the Confederation, and be carried out by the Emperor.
V. Imperial Diet.
ARTICLE XX. The Imperial Diet is elected by universal
and direct election with secret votes.
Until the legal arrangement reserved in § 5 of the Election
Laws of 3ist May, 1869 (Federal Law Gazette, 1869, page
145), has been made, there are to be elected — in Bavaria,
48 ; in Wurtemberg, 17 ; in Baden, 14 ; Hesse, south of
the Main, 6 members, and the total number of the members
consists, therefore, of 382.
ARTICLE XXI. Officials do not require any leave of
absence on entering into the Imperial Diet.
If any member of the Imperial Diet accepts of any
salaried appointment of the Empire, or of any State of
the Confederation, or enters into any Imperial or State
office to which a higher rank, or higher salary is attached,
he loses his seat and service in the Diet, and can only
regain his position in the same by re-election.
ARTICLE XXII. The proceedings of the Imperial Diet
are public.
Accurate reports of the proceedings in the public sittings
of the Imperial Diet are free from any responsibility.
ARTICLE XXIII. The Imperial Diet has the right to
propose laws within the competency of the Empire, and to
forward Petitions which have been addressed to it to the
Council of the Confederation, or to the Chancellor of the
Empire.
ARTICLE XXIV. The Legislative Period of the Imperial
Diet is 3 years. For a Dissolution of the Imperial Diet
within this time, a Resolution of the Council of the Con-
federation, with the Assent of the Emperor, is requisite.
ARTICLE XXV. In case of a Dissolution of the Imperial
Diet, the Meeting of the Electors must be called within
a period of 60 days after such dissolution, and within
a period of 90 days the Imperial Diet must be summoned.
ARTICLE XXVI. Without the assent of the Imperial
Diet the Prorogation of the same may not be extended
over 30 days, and it can never be repeated during the same
session.
296 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
ARTICLE XXVII. The Imperial Diet scrutinizes the
legality of the credentials of its Members, and decides there-
on. It regulates its own method of business and discipline
by a business-order, and elects its President, Vice-Presidents,
and Secretaries.
ARTICLE XXVIII. The Imperial Diet decides by abso-
lute Majority of Votes. The presence of a majority of the
legal number of the members is necessary for the validity
of a resolution.
In Voting on a matter which, according to the stipulations
of this Constitution, is not common to the whole Empire,
only the votes of those members will be counted who have
been elected in those Confederate States to which the
matter is common.
ARTICLE XXIX. The Members of the Imperial Diet are
Representatives of the entire people, and are not bound by
orders and instructions.
ARTICLE XXX. No Member of the Imperial Diet can
at any time be proceeded against, either judicially or by
way of discipline, on account of his votes, or for expressions
made use of in the exercise of his functions, nor can he
be made responsible in any other way out of the Assembly.
ARTICLE XXXI. Without the assent of the Imperial
Diet, no Member of the same may be placed under examina-
tion or arrested during the period of the Session for any
deed subject to punishment, except when taken in the
fact, or in the course of the following day.
The same assent is needful in arrest for debt.
At the requisition of the Imperial Diet, every correctional
procedure against a Member of the same, and all investiga-
tions or civil arrests must be relinquished for the duration
of the period of the Session.
ARTICLE XXXII. The Members of the Imperial Diet
must not receive any Salary or Indemnification in that
capacity.
VI. Customs and Commercial Affairs.
ARTICLE XXXIII. Germany forms one Customs and
Commercial Territory, encircled by a common Customs
frontier. Those separate parts of Territory are excluded
which, from their position, are not adapted for inclusion
in the Customs frontier.
All articles of free trade in any one of the States of the
CONSTITUTION OF GERMAN EMPIRE 297
Confederation may be introduced into any other State of
the Confederation, and can only be subjected to a duty
in the latter in so far as similar articles produced in that
State are subject to a home duty.
ARTICLE XXXIV. The Hanseatic towns Bremen and
Hamburg, with so much of their own or of the adjacent
Territory as may be needful for the purpose, remain as
free ports outside the common Customs frontier until
they apply to be admitted therein.
ARTICLE XXXV. The Empire has the sole right of
Legislation in all Custom-house affairs, in the taxation of
Salt and Tobacco produced in the Territories of the Con-
federation, Beer, and Spirit, and Sugar, and Syrup, or other
home productions made from beetroot, in the reciprocal
protection of consumption duties raised in the separate
States of the Confederation against defraudations, as well
as in such measures as the Customs Committees may find
requisite for the security of the common Customs frontier.
In Bavaria, Wurtemberg, and Baden, the Taxation of
the native Spirit and Beer remains for the present subject
to the laws of the land. But the States of the Confederation
will direct their efforts to bring about an assimilation in
the taxation of these articles likewise.
ARTICLE XXXVI. The Collection and Administration
of the Duties and Consumption Taxes (Article XXXV)
remain in the hands of each State of the Confederation,
within its own Territory, in so far as they have hitherto
been so.
The Emperor watches over the observance of the legal
procedure through Imperial officials, whom he attaches
to the Customs or Excise offices, and to the directing
authorities of the separate States, according to the advice
of the Committee of the Council of the Confederation for
Customs and Excise affairs.
Information given by these officials as to defects in the
execution of the common legislation (Article XXXV) will
be laid before the Council of the Confederation for decision.
ARTICLE XXXVII. In decisions relative to the adminis-
trative instructions and arrangements (Article XXXV) for
the execution of the common legislation, the Presidency
has the casting vote, when it is given for the continuance
of the existing instruction or arrangement.
ARTICLE XXXVIII. The revenue from the Duties or
298 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
other Taxes mentioned in Article XXXV, the latter in
so far as they are subject to the Imperial legislation, flows
into the Imperial Treasury.
This revenue consists of the whole income arising from
the duties and other taxes after the deduction of :
1. The tax-compensations and abatements according to
the laws or the general administrative regulations.
2. The repayments for incorrect levies.
3. The expenses of collection and administration as
follows :
a. For the Customs, the expenses which are requisite
for the protection and the collection of the duties in that
part of -the frontiers situated towards foreign countries
and in the border district.
b. For the Salt Tax, the expenses which are incurred for
the salaries of the officials who are employed in the salt
works to collect and control that tax.
c. For the Beet-sugar and Tobacco Tax, the compensation
which, according to the decisions of the Council of the
Confederation from time to time, has to be made to the
several Federal Governments for the expenses incurred in
the administration of these taxes.
d. For the other duties 15 per cent, of the total income.
The Territories situated outside the common Customs
frontier pay an agreed sum towards defraying the expenses
of the Empire.
Bavaria, Wurtemberg, and Baden do not participate
in the income flowing into the Imperial Treasury from the
taxes on spirits and beer, nor in the corresponding part of
the above-mentioned agreed payment.
ARTICLE XXXIX. The Quarterly extracts which are
to be made at the end of each quarter of the year by the
collecting authorities of the Federal States, and the final
statements to be made at the end of the year and the close
of the books, on the income from duties and from consump-
tion dues flowing into the Imperial Treasury according
to Article XXXVIII, falling due during the quarter, or
during the financial year, are to be collected into chief
summaries, after previous examination, by the directing
authorities of the Federal States, and therein each duty is
to be separately shown ; these summaries are to be sent
in to the Committee of the Council of the Confederation
for financial affairs.
CONSTITUTION OF GERMAN EMPIRE 299
On the basis of these summaries the said Committee
makes out preliminarily every 3 months the amount due
from the Treasury of each State of the Confederation, to
the Imperial Treasury, and communicates these amounts
to the Council of the Confederation, and to the States of
the Confederation ; it also presents the final statement of
these amounts every year, with remarks, to the Council
of the Confederation. The Council of the Confederation
decides on this statement.
ARTICLE XL. The stipulations in the Zollverein Treaty
of 8th July, 1867, remain in force in so far as they have
not been altered by the provisions of this Constitution,
and so long as they are not altered in the way pointed out
in Article VII, or Article LXXVIII.
VII. Railway Affairs.
ARTICLE XLI. Railways which are considered necessary
for the defence of Germany, or for the sake of the common
intercourse, may, by virtue of an Imperial law, even against
the opposition of the members of the Confederation whose
Territory is intersected by the Railways, but without
prejudice to the prerogatives of the country, be constructed
on account of the Empire, or concessions to execute the
works may be granted to private contractors, with the
right of expropriation.
Every existing Railway board of direction is bound to
consent to the junction of newly-constructed Railways at
the expense of the latter.
The legal enactments which have granted a right of
denial to existing Railway undertakings against the con-
struction of parallel or competing lines are hereby, without
prejudice to rights already gained, repealed for the entire
Empire. Nor can such a right of denial be ever granted
again in concessions to be issued hereafter.
ARTICLE XLII. The Governments of the Confederation
bind themselves to manage the German Railways as a uni-
form network in the interest of the common intercourse,
and likewise for this purpose to have all new Railways
which are to be made, constructed, and fitted up according
to uniform rules.
ARTICLE XLIII. For this purpose corresponding working
arrangements are to be adopted with all possible despatch,
300 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
particularly with regard to Railway Police Regulations.
The Empire has likewise to take heed that the Railway
Boards keep the lines at all times in such a state of repair
as to ensure safety, and that they provide them with the
working material necessary for the traffic.
ARTICLE XLIV. The Railway Boards are bound to
introduce the necessary Passenger Trains of the proper
speed for the through traffic, and for the arrangement of
corresponding journeys, also the requisite trains to provide
for the goods traffic ; likewise, to arrange direct expeditions
for passengers and goods traffic, with permission for con-
veying the means of transport from one line to the other
for the usual payments.
ARTICLE XLV. The Empire exercises the control over
the Tariffs, and will especially operate to the end :
1. That working regulations, in conformity with each
other, be introduced as soon as possible on all German
railroads }
2. That the greatest possible equalization and reduction
of the tariffs shall take place, and particularly for greater
distances an abatement of the tariffs for the transport of
coals, coke, timber, ores, stones, salt, raw iron, manures,
and similar articles, so as to be more in proportion to the
necessities of agriculture and industry, and that the one
pfennig tariff may be introduced as speedily as possible.
ARTICLE XLVI. In times of distress, particularly when
an unusual dearth of the necessaries of life occurs, the rail-
way boards are bound to introduce a lower special tariff
for the transport of grain, meal, pulse, and potatoes, tem-
porarily, according to the necessity, as will be determined
by the Emperor on the proposal of the respective com-
mittee of the Council of the Confederation, which tariff,
however, must not be lower than the lowest rate already
existing for raw produce on the respective line.
The above, as well as . the stipulations made in the
Articles XLII to XLV, are not applicable to Bavaria.
But the Empire has the right in regard to Bavaria like-
wise to lay down, by way of legislation, uniform rules for
the construction and fitting up of the railways which are
of importance for the defence of the country.
ARTICLE XLVII. The requisitions of the authorities
of the Empire relative to making use of the railways for
the purpose of the defence of Germany, must be obeyed
CONSTITUTION OF GERMAN EMPIRE 301
without question by all the railway boards. In particular,
the military and all materials of war are to be conveyed
at equally reduced rates.
VIII. Postal and Telegraph Affairs.
ARTICLE XLVIII. The postal and telegraph affairs
will be arranged and administered for the entire German
Empire as uniform institutions for State intercourse.
The legislation of the Empire in postal and telegraphic
affairs, as provided in Article IV, does not extend to those
objects, the regulation of which, according to the principles
which govern the North German Postal and Telegraph
Administration, has been left to definite rules or adminis-
trative directions.
ARTICLE XLIX. The revenues of the postal and tele-
graphic service are in common for the entire Empire. The
expenses will be defrayed from the common revenues.
The surpluses flow into the Imperial Treasury (Section XII).
ARTICLE L. The chief direction of the postal and tele-
graphic administration belongs to the Emperor. The officials
appointed by him have the duty and the right to take care
that uniformity in the organization of the administration
and in carrying on the service, as well as in the qualification
of the officials, be introduced and maintained..
The issue of definitive rules and general administrative
directions, as well as the sole care of the relations with other
postal and telegraphic offices, belongs to the Emperor.
All the officials of the postal and telegraph administration
are bound to obey the Imperial directions. This duty is
to be recorded in the oath of service.
The appointment of the requisite principal officials for
the administrative authorities of the post and telegraphic
service in the various districts (such as directors, coun-
sellors, chief inspectors), likewise the appointment of the
officials acting as the organs of the before-mentioned
functionaries, in the service of supervision, &c., in the separ-
ate districts (such as inspectors, controllers), proceeds,
for the whole territory of the German Empire, from the
Emperor, to whom these officials render the oath of service.
Timely notice of the appointments in question, for the
governmental approbation and publication, will be given
to the Governments of the several States, so far as their
territory is thereby concerned.
302 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
The other officials necessary for the post and telegraphic
service, as well as all those required for the local or technical
business, therefore the officials, &c., acting at the actual
places of business, will be appointed by the respective
State Governments.
Where there is no independent State post or telegraph
administration, the provisions of the special Treaties form
the rule.
ARTICLE LI. In making over the balance of the postal
administration for general Imperial purposes (Article
XLIX), in consideration of the previous difference in the
net incomes obtained by the State postal administrations
of the separate territories, the following procedure is to
be observed for the purpose of a corresponding arrangement
during the undermentioned period of transition.
From the postal balances which have accrued in the
separate postal districts during the 5 years, 1861 to 1865,
an average yearly balance will be calculated, and the share
which each separate postal district has had in the postal
balance thus shown for the whole territory of the Empire,
will be fixed according to percentages.
According to the proportion ascertained in this manner,
the separate States will be credited for the next 8 years
after their entrance into the postal administration of the
Empire, with such quotas as accrue to them from the postal
balances produced in the Empire, in account with their
other contributions for Imperial purposes.
At the expiration of the 8 years all distinctions cease,
and the postal balances will flow in undivided account
into the Imperial Treasury, according to the principle
set forth in Article XLIX.
From the quotas of the postal surplus thus ascertained
during the before-mentioned 8 years for the Hanseatic
towns, one-half will be placed beforehand every year at
the disposal of the Emperor, for the purpose, in the first
place, of paying therefrom the expenses for the estab-
lishment of normal postal institutions in the Hanseatic
towns.
ARTICLE LI I. The stipulations in the foregoing Articles
XLVIII to LI have no application to Bavaria and Wurtem-
berg. In their place the following stipulations are in force
for those two States of the Confederation :
To the Empire alone belongs the legislation as to the
CONSTITUTION OF GERMAN EMPIRE 303
postal and telegraph privileges, as to the legal relations
between both institutions and the public, as to exemptions
from postage and rates of postage, exclusively, however, of
the rules and tariff regulations for the home circulation
of Bavaria, and of Wurtemberg respectively, likewise under
similar reservation the settlement of the fees for telegraphic
correspondence.
In the same manner the regulation of the postal and
telegraph intercourse with foreign countries belongs to
the Empire, excepting the direct intercourse of Bavaria
and of Wurtemberg themselves with the neighbouring
States which do not belong to the Empire, the regulations
as to which remain as stipulated in Article XLIX of the
Postal Treaty of 23rd November, 1867.
Bavaria and Wurtemberg do not participate in the
income flowing into the Imperial Treasury from the postal
and telegraph service.
IX. Shipping and Navigation.
ARTICLE LIII. The war navy of the Empire is one united
navy under the chief command of the Emperor. The
organization and composition thereof is the business of
the Emperor, who appoints the Naval officers and officials,
and into whose service they and the men are to be sworn.
The Harbour of Kiel and that of Jahde are Imperial
military harbours.
The necessary expenses for the establishment and main-
tenance of the war fleet, and the institutions in connexion
therewith, are paid from the Treasury of the Empire.
The whole of the maritime population of the Empire,
including engineers and shipwrights, are free from service
in the land army, but, on the other hand, are bound to serve
in the Imperial Navy.
The apportionment of the recruits is arranged according
to the number of the maritime population, and the quota
which each State thus contributes is deducted from the
contingent to the land army.
ARTICLE LIV. The merchant vessels of all the States
of the Confederation form one undivided commercial navy.
The Empire has to determine the method of ascertaining
the burden of sea-going vessels, to grant bills of admeasure-
ment, as well as to regulate the ship-certificates, and to
304 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
determine the conditions upon which the permission to
command a sea-going vessel depends.
The commercial ships of all the States of the Confedera-
tion will be admitted and treated on equal terms in the
sea harbours, and in all the natural and artificial waterways
of the separate States of the Confederation. The dues
to be levied in the sea-ports from sea-going vessels or their
cargoes for using the navigation appliances must not exceed
the expenses which are requisite for the maintenance and
ordinary repairs of those appliances.
On all natural waterways dues may only be levied for
the use of such appliances as are especially intended for
the furtherance of traffic. These dues, as well as the dues
payable for making use of such artificial waterways as are
State property, must not exceed the expenses which are
requisite for the maintenance and ordinary repairs of such
erections and works. These regulations are also applicable
to floatage so far as it takes place on navigable waterways.
The imposition of other or higher dues on foreign ships,
or their cargoes, than those paid by the ships of the Federal
States does not belong to any single State, but solely to
the Empire.
ARTICLE LV. The Flag of the navy and of the merchant-
shipping is black, white, and red.
X. Consular Service.
ARTICLE LVI. The whole of the Consular service of the
German Empire is under the superintendence of the Em-
peror, who appoints the Consuls after consultation with
the Committee of the Council of the Confederation for
Commerce and Traffic.
Within the official district of the German Consuls no new
Consulates for separate States may be erected. The German
Consuls exercise the functions of a national Consul for any
State of the Confederation, not represented in their district.
The whole of the existing Consulates for separate States
are to be abolished as soon as the organization of the
German Consulates is so completed, that the representation
of the interests of all the States of the Confederation is
recognized by the Council of the Confederation as secured
by the German Consulates.
CONSTITUTION OF GERMAN EMPIRE 305
XI. Military Affairs of the Empire.
ARTICLE LVII. Every German is liable to military
service, and cannot have that service performed by sub-
stitute.
ARTICLE LVIII. The expenses and burdens of the whole
of the military affairs of the Empire are to be borne equally
by all of the States of the Confederation and those belonging
to them, so that no preferences, or overburdening of any
single States or classes, are in principle admissible. Where
an equal division of the burdens is not practicable in natura,
without prejudice to the public welfare, the matter is to
be arranged on the principles of equity by means of legisla-
tion.
ARTICLE LIX. Every German capable of service belongs
for 7 years to the standing army, as a rule from the comple-
tion of the 2oth to the commencement of the 28th year of
his age ; that is, for the first 3 of these years with the
standards, and for the last 4 years in the reserve ; then
for the following 5 years of his life to the Landwehr. In
those States of the Confederation wherein hitherto a longer
period than 12 years of service altogether has been legal,
the gradual reduction of such service can only take place
in so far as regard for the readiness for war of the Imperial
army permits" it.
With respect to the emigration of the reserve men only
those regulations are to be applied which are in force for
the emigration of the Landwehr men.
ARTICLE LX. The effective strength of the German
army in peace is fixed till the 3ist December, 1871, at one
Eer cent, of the population of the year 1867, and the separate
tates of the Confederation supply it pro rata thereof.
Subsequently the effective strength of the army in peace
will be determined by Imperial legislation.
ARTICLE LXI. After the publication of this Constitution
the whole Prussian Military Code of Laws is to be intro-
duced throughout the Empire without delay, both the laws
themselves and the regulations, instructions, and rescripts
issued for the explanation and completion thereof, especially
therefore the Military Penal Code of the 3rd April, 1845 ;
the Military Court-martial Regulations of the 3rd April,
1845 ; the Ordinance upon Courts of Honour of the 20th
July, 1843 ; the regulations upon recruiting, time of service,
306 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
allowance and maintenance affairs, billeting, compensa-
tions for damages to agriculture, mobilization, &c., for
war and peace. The military Church ritual is, however,
excluded.
After the uniform war organization of the German army
has been effected, a comprehensive Military Law for the
Empire will be laid before the Imperial Diet and the Council
of the Confederation for their constitutional decision.
ARTICLE LXII. To cover the outlay necessary for the
entire German army, and the arrangements appertaining
thereunto until the 3ist December, 1871, there are yearly
to be placed at the disposal of the Emperor, as many
times 225 thalers, in words two hundred and twenty-five
thalers, as the poll-number of the peace strength of
the army amounts to, according to Article LX. See
Section XII.
After the 3ist December, 1871, these contributions must
continue to be paid to the Imperial Treasury by each
State of the Confederation. For the calculation thereof
the effective strength in peace, as provisionally settled in
Article LX, will be taken as the basis until it is altered by
an Imperial law.
The expenditure of this sum for the entire Imperial
Army and its arrangements will be determined on by the
Estimate Law.
In settling the estimates of the military expenses, the
legal organization of the Imperial army, as laid down in
this Constitution, will be taken as the basis.
ARTICLE LXIII. The entire land force of the Empire
will form a single army, which in war and peace is under
the command of the Emperor.
The regiments, &c., bear running numbers for the entire
German Army. For their clothing, the ground colours
and fashion of the Royal Prussian army are to be the
model. It is left to the chiefs of the respective con-
tingents to determine the external marks of distinction
(cockades, &c.).
It is the duty and the right of the Emperor to take care
that all the divisions of troops within the German army
are numerically complete and effective for war, and that
unity in the organization and formation, in the armament
and command, in the training of the men, as well as in
the qualifications of the officers, be established and main-
CONSTITUTION OF GERMAN EMPIRE 307
tained. For this purpose the Emperor has the right to
convince himself of the condition of the separate contingents
at all times by inspection, and to order the reformation
of any defects thereby discovered.
The Emperor determines the effective strength, the
division and arrangement of the contingents of the Imperial
army, as well as the organization of the Landwehr ; he also
has the right of determining the garrisons within the terri-
tories of the Confederation, and to order the embodiment
of any part of the Imperial army in a state of preparation
for war.
For the purpose of keeping up the indispensable uni-
formity in the administration, maintenance, armament,
and equipment of all the divisions of troops of the German
army, the orders issued thereon in future for the Prussian
army will be communicated in a suitable manner, through
the Committee for the Land Army and Fortresses men-
tioned in Article VIII, No. i, to the commanders of the other
contingents for observance.
ARTICLE LXIV. All German troops are bound to obey
the commands of the Emperor unconditionally. This duty
is to be specified in the Banner-oath.
The Commander-in-Chief of a contingent, likewise all
officers who command Troops of more than one contingent,
and all commanders of Fortresses are appointed by the
Emperor. The officers appointed by the Emperor take
the Banner-oath to him. The appointments of Generals
and officers acting as Generals within the contingents are
at all times subject to the approbation of the Emperor.
The Emperor has the right, for purposes of transposition,
with or without promotion, to select for such appointments
as are to be made by him in the Imperial service, whether
in the Prussian Army or in other contingents, from the
officers of all the contingents of the Imperial Army.
ARTICLE LXV. The right of erecting Fortresses within
the Territories of the Confederation belongs to the Emperor,
who proposes, according to Section XII, the grant of the
necessary means for the purpose, in so far as they are not
provided for in the ordinary Estimates.
ARTICLE LXVI. Where nothing to the contrary is stipu-
lated by particular Conventions, the Sovereigns of the
Confederation, or the Senates, appoint the Officers of their
Contingents, subject to the restriction of Article LXIV.
X 2
308 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
They are the chiefs of all the divisions of troops belonging,
to their Territories, and enjoy the honours connected there-
with. They have especially the right of inspection at all
times, and receive, besides the regular reports and announce-
ments of alterations which take place, timely information, for
the purpose of Governmental publication, of all promotions
or nominations among the respective divisions of the
Troops.
Likewise, they have the right to make use, for purposes
of Police, not only of their own Troops, but also to make
requisition for any other division of Troops of the Imperial
Army which may be located in their Territories.
ARTICLE LXVII. Savings from the Military Estimate
do not belong under any circumstances to a single Govern-
ment, but at all times to the Imperial Treasury.
ARTICLE LXVIII. The Emperor may, when the public
safety is threatened in the Territories of the Confederation,
declare any part thereof to be in a State of War. Until
the promulgation of an Imperial law, which will regulate
the premisses, the form of publication, and the effects
of such a Declaration, the rules of the Prussian law of
4th June, 1851, remain in force. (Collection of Laws for
1851, page 451, 6- seq.)
Final Stipulation to Section XI.
The provisions contained in this section come into force
in Bavaria according to the special stipulations of the
Treaty of Confederation of 23rd November, 1870 (Federal
Law Gazette, 1871, page 9), under III, § 5, and in Wurtem-
berg, according to the special stipulations of the Military
Convention of ^ November, 1870. (Federal Law Gazette,
1870, page 658.)
XII. Finances of the Empire.
ARTICLE LXIX. All the Receipts and Disbursements of
the Empire must be estimated for each year, and be brought
into the Imperial Estimates. These are to be fixed by a law
before the beginning of the financial year, according to
the following principles.
ARTICLE LXX. To provide for all common expenses,
any balances of the preceding year are first of all em-
ployed, and likewise the common Revenues derived from
CONSTITUTION OF GERMAN EMPIRE 309
the Duties, the common Consumption Taxes, and from
the Postal and Telegraph Services. In so far as they
cannot be provided for by these Revenues, they are, as
long as Imperial Taxes are not introduced, to be met by
contributions from the single States of the Confederation,
in proportion to their population, which contributions to
the amount estimated in the Budget will be estimated
by the Chancellor of the Empire.
ARTICLE LXXI. The common Disbursements are, as a
rule, voted for one year ; they may, however, in particular
cases, be voted for a longer period.
During the time of transition mentioned in Article LX,
the Estimates of Expenditure for the Army, arranged
under heads, are to be laid before the Council of the Con-
federation and the Imperial Diet only for their information
and remembrance.
ARTICLE LXXI I. The Chancellor of the Empire is to
give account yearly to the Council of the Confederation and
to the Imperial Diet of the application of all the incomes
of the Empire, for discharge of responsibility.
ARTICLE LXXIII. In cases of extraordinary require-
ments, the Contracting of a Loan, also the undertaking
of a Guarantee on account of the Empire, may take place
in the way of Imperial legislation.
Final Stipulation to Section XII.
To the Expenditure for the Bavarian Army, Articles
LXIX and LXXI are only applicable in conformity with
the stipulations of the Treaty of 23rd November, 1870,
mentioned in the final stipulation to Section XI and
Article LXXII, only so far that the assignment to Bavaria
of the sums necessary for the Bavarian Army is to be notified
to the Council of the Confederation and to the Imperial
Diet.
XIII. Settlement of Differences and Penal Stipulations.
ARTICLE LXXIV. Every undertaking against the
existence, the integrity, the safety, or the Constitution of
the German Empire ; finally, insulting the Council of the
Confederation or the Imperial Diet, or a member of the
Council of the Confederation or of the Imperial Diet, or
any authority, or a public functionary of the Empire, whilst
310 THE FRANCO-GERMAN WAR
in the exercise of their vocation, or in reference to their
vocation, by word, in writing, printing, drawing, figurative,
or other representation, will be sentenced and punished
in the separate States of the Confederation, according to
the existing law, or the laws which may in future be enacted
there, in pursuance of which a similar offence committed
against that separate State of the Confederation, its
Constitution, its Chambers, or Diet, the members of its
Chambers or Diet, its authorities or functionaries, would
be punished.
ARTICLE LXXV. For those undertakings against the
German Empire, mentioned in Article LXXIV, which,
if they had been undertaken against one of the separate
States of the Confederation, would be qualified as High
Treason, or Treason against the Country, the Common
Upper Court of Appeal of the three Free and Hanseatic
Towns, at Lubeck, is the competent deciding authority
in first and last instance.
The special regulations as to the competency and the
procedure of the Upper Court of Appeal are to be settled
by way of Imperial legislation. Until the promulgation
of an Imperial law, .the competency of the Courts in the
separate States of the Confederation, and the provisions
relative to the procedure of these Courts, remain as they
have hitherto been.
ARTICLE LXXVI. Differences between various States
of the Confederation, in so far as they are not of a private
legal nature, and therefore to be decided by the competent
judicial authorities, will, at the suit of one of the parties,
be settled by the Council of the Confederation.
Constitutional differences in those States of the Con-
federation in whose constitution no authority for settling
such disputes is provided are to be amicably arranged by
the Council of the Confederation at the suit of one of the
parties, or if this should not succeed, they are to be settled
by way of Imperial legislation.
ARTICLE LXXVII. If, in a State of the Confederation,
the case of a refusal of justice should occur, and sufficient
aid cannot be obtained by way of law, it is the duty of the
Council of the Confederation to take cognizance of the
complaints as to the refused or hindered administration
of the law when proved according to the Constitution and
existing laws of the respective State of the Confederation,
CONSTITUTION OF GERMAN EMPIRE 311
and thereupon to cause the Government of the Confederate
State which has given occasion for the complaint, to afford
judicial aid.
XIV. General Stipulations.
ARTICLE LXXVIII. Alterations in the Constitution
take place by way of legislation. They are considered as
rej ected if they have 14 votes in the Council of the Confedera-
tion against them.
Those provisions of the Constitution of the Empire, by
which certain rights are established for Separate States
of the Confederation in their relation to the community,
can only be altered with the consent of the State of the
Confederation entitled to those rights.
CHAPTER XI
TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND THE BALKAN STATES
Russians' interest in foreign affairs — Gorchakov — Denunciation
of the Black Sea Convention — Gorchakov's Circular — Franco-
German War — Rapprochement of Russia and Prussia — Protest
of Great Britain against Denunciation — The Treaty of London,
1 87 1 — Reasons for the changes made — The European Commis-
sion of the Danube — Turkey in the Concert of Europe — Freedom
from external interference — The Andrassy Note — Bulgarian
Atrocities — Conference of the Powers at Constantinople —
Russo-Turkish War, 1877-8 — Treaty of San Stefano — Alliance
of Great Britain and Turkey — Treaty of Berlin — Bulgaria
acquires Eastern Rumelia — Revolution of the Young Turks,
1908 — Austrian annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina —
Bulgarian Independence — Turco-Italian War — Balkan League
— First Balkan War — Treaty of London, 1913 — Second
Balkan War — Treaty of Bucharest — European War, 1914 —
Entente offer of guarantee to Turkey — Goeben and Breslau —
Turkey enters the War.
Texts i The Treaty of London (1871) — The Treaty of Berlin
(1878) — The Treaty of London (1913) — The Treaty of Bucharest
(1913)-
THE autocratic Tsar Nicholas I died on March 2, 1855,
before the Crimean War was over. He was succeeded by
his son Alexander II, under whom Russia entered on
a period of peaceful development and legal and adminis-
trative reform. Such a period inevitably had the result of
restoring to the Russian Government its feelings of dignity
and self-respect, and of causing it to remember with feel-
ings of humiliation the restrictions put upon its freedom
by the Treaty of Paris. It was naturally felt to be unduly
cramping to the powers of a great Empire that it should
be prevented from having forts or arsenals on its own
Black Sea coast, or from keeping naval forces in those
GORCHAKOV 313
waters. It should be borne in mind also, that the upper
classes of Russia have for a long time been distinguished
for the keen and lively interest which they take in the
foreign affairs of their country. This is due to the fact
that the autocratic Constitution of Russia to a great
extent excluded the educated classes from participating
in the internal government of their country. Their atten-
tion was therefore largely concentrated upon foreign policy,
all the more since an active interest in this carried with it
no such personal risks as were involved in too obvious an
interest in the domestic affairs of government.
Alexander II had for his chief minister Prince Alexander
Gorchakov, descended from an ancient and distinguished
family. Gorchakov's knowledge of foreign affairs was
unrivalled, and his prestige in the Chancelleries of Europe
stood very high. In 1870-1 he was able to carry out the
denunciation of the clauses of the Paris Treaty of 1856,
which neutralized the Black Sea.
The moment chosen for this dramatic announcement
was October 31, 1870, when France, who, with England,
was the great upholder of the Treaty of Paris, was involved
in the disastrous war with Germany, and had lost her great-
field armies at Sedan and Metz. Gorchakov's circular
to the Powers of Europe, announcing the repudiation of
the Black Sea Convention, was dated four days after the
capitulation of Metz.
The grounds upon which Gorchakov based his denuncia-
tion of Articles XI, XIII, and XIV of the Treaty of Paris,
and the Convention of the same date between Russia and
Turkey embodying those Articles, were two : first, that the
provisions of the Treaty of Paris had been broken in other
respects ; and second, that the neutralization of the Black
Sea was unreasonable. The first contention was unproved,
nor even, if true, would it necessarily have justified the
breaking of the rest of the treaty. The second contention
— that the Black Sea neutralization was unreasonable —
314 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
was a fair ground for discussion, and for modifying the
treaty by arrangement with the signatory and guaranteeing
Powers. But Gorchakov took no such course. His circular
of October 31, 1870, was simply a curt notice of denuncia-
tion.
The circular itself was not quite ingenuous. It contended
that the changes which had taken place in Roumania were
a breach of the Treaty of Paris. Article XXII of that
treaty stated that 'the Principalities of Wallachia and
Moldavia shall continue to enjoy under the Suzerainty of
the Porte, and under the Guarantee of the Contracting
Powers, the Privileges and the Immunities of which they
are in possession '. These privileges had certainly been
increased since the Treaty of Paris, for the two Principali-
ties had united themselves into one, and had in 1866
elected a foreign Prince in place of the native Prince
Alexander Couza. The Powers at first had objected to
the election of a Prince belonging to a foreign Royal
House, but they speedily acquiesced in the election of
Prince Charles Antony, of the House of Hohenzollern-
Sigmaringen. This was no breach of the Treaty of Paris,
which had secured to the Principalities their existing
privileges, but could not be held perpetually to forbid the
acquisition of new privileges. In any case, even if modifica-
tion had taken place in the Treaty of Paris, this could be
no ground for Russia arbitrarily modifying other clauses
of it, without consulting the Powers who were responsible
with her for the Treaty.
The other point in which Gorchakov said the Paris
Treaty had been broken was in the clause which declared
the Straits closed to foreign ships of war when the Porte
was at peace. ' Repeatedly,' ran the circular, ' and
under various pretexts, Foreign Men-of-War have been
suffered to enter the Straits, and whole Squadrons, whose
presence was an infraction of the character of absolute
Neutrality attributed to those waters, admitted to the
3i6 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
Black Sea.' l No facts were advanced to show that such
breaches of the Treaty of Paris had taken place, nor even
if proved could they have justified Russia in denouncing
the restrictive clauses, as by Article XIV of the Paris
Treaty, Russia had bound herself with the rest of the
Powers to this effect : ' It [i. e. the Black Sea Convention]
cannot be either annulled or modified without the assent
of the Powers signing the present Treaty.'
Gorchakov further contended in the circular of October
31, 1870, that the restrictions were unreasonable, and based
upon an unjustifiable distrust of the Russian Government.
The restrictions, he wrote, were unreasonable, because,
' while Russia was disarming in the Black Sea, . . . and
likewise loyally deprived herself of the possibility of taking
measures for an effectual Maritime Defence in the adjoin-
ing Seas and Ports, Turkey preserved her privilege of main-
taining unlimited Naval Forces in the Archipelago and the
Straits ; France and England preserved their power of
concentrating their squadrons in the Mediterranean '. In
the same way it was pointed out that the Straits were
only closed by the Treaty of Paris when the Porte was at
peace. In time of war, the Porte could let the navies
of any hostile Power into the unguarded Black Sea, to
the undefended coast of Russia. This danger was all the
greater, as steamships had replaced sailing ships in the
navies of the world since the Treaty of 1856. A swift
attack upon Russia's unprotected Black Sea coast might
be arranged at any moment.
Stated thus, the neutralization of the Black Sea appeared
to be not altogether fair to Russia, and Gorchakov had
a good case with which to approach the signatory Powers
with proposals for its amendment. Unfortunately he took
no such course, and therefore struck a blow at the respect
for treaties and the public faith of Europe.
For the purposes of Russia, the time was well chosen.
> Hertslet, vol. iii, No. 429, p. 1894.
RUSSIA AND PRUSSIA 317
France, as before mentioned, was already invaded, and had
lost both fortresses and armies ; the Empire had fallen, and
Paris had been invested. Obviously the French Provisional
Government had no attention to spare for the Eastern
Question. Victorious Germany might have thrown its
weight on the side of justice, and have striven for the
maintenance of the Treaty of Paris or for its modification
by consent of .the signatories. But the Prussian Govern-
ment, far from doing this, actually favoured Russia's
individual denunciation of the Black Sea Convention.
Gorchakov and Bismarck had been friends since 1851,
when Gorchakov was Russian minister to the Diet of the
Germanic Confederation at Frankfort. In 1858 Bismarck
was sent to Petrograd as Prussian ambassador, and remained
there four years. Gorchakov, as Minister of Foreign Affairs,
naturally came into still closer relations with Bismarck.
When Gorchakov became Imperial Chancellor in 1863,
there was quite a rapprochement between the Governments
of Russia and Prussia. The benevolent neutrality and
friendship of Russia was exceedingly useful to Bismarck,
when carrying out his very delicate and risky arrangements
with regard to Schleswig-Holstein in 1863 and 1864. This
largely explains the inactivity of Great Britain during
that crisis. In the same way, Russian friendship gave
Prussia a free hand in the war with Austria in 1866, and
helped to keep Napoleon III inactive. In 1870, when
Prussia invaded France, the Russo-Prussian rapprochement
helped to ensure the neutrality of Austria, which was
confidently expected by Napoleon III to intervene on his
behalf. In return for these very substantial benefits,
Bismarck could do no less than give Russia a free hand
with regard to the Black Sea Convention. Austria was in
no condition to oppose the Russo-Prussian understanding,
Italy was too busy completing her unity by the occupation
of Rome (September 20, 1870). Great Britain's protest
(November 10, 1870) was therefore of little avail, though
3i8 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
put with all the logic and cogency which distinguished
Lord Granville's dispatches. The Black Sea Convention
was denounced, yet at the same time Russia was induced
to submit the matter to discussion at a Congress of Powers
held at London in 1871. Although the mischief had been
already done, the Powers attempted some sort of vindica-
tion of the principle of treaty-obligation. They converted
Russia's denunciation into a solemn treaty (March 13,
1871), and so put it upon a regular footing.
The Treaty annulled Articles XI, XIII, and XIV of the
Paris Treaty of 1856, and the separate and purely conse-
quential Black Sea Convention of the same date ; Article XI
interdicted the Black Sea to the Flag of War of any nation ;
Article XIII prohibited the maintenance of military or
maritime arsenals on the coasts ; Article XIV declared the
annexed Black Sea Convention to have the same force as
if embodied in the Treaty, and also that the Paris Treaty
could not be changed without the consent of the signatory
Powers. These Articles were replaced by a fresh one l
which retained the principle of the closure of the Straits
to foreign war-ships, but which differed from the provisions
of the 1856 Treaty in three important respects : (i) it
made no mention of the neutralization of the Black Sea,
where accordingly Russia could build navies and fortify
ports ; (2) it permitted Turkey to open the Straits to foreign
ships of war, if the Porte should consider such a course
necessary in order to fulfil the stipulations of the Paris
Treaty of 1856, in so far as these stipulations were still in
force ; (3) the statement that the Treaty could only be modi-
fied with the consent of the signatory Powers was omitted.
The reasons for these differences between the Treaties
of 1856 and 1871 were probably somewhat as follows :
i. That Russia should be able to fortify its own coast
on the Black Sea, and to maintain warships there, was
only reasonable ; otherwise, during a war with Turkey, the
» Article II of the -Treaty of March 13, 1871.
REASONS FOR THE CHANGES 319
Black Sea coast of Russia would be exposed without defence
to foreign ships of war, which the Porte could let through
the Dardanelles. It is true that the Treaty of Paris, by
interdicting the Black Sea to the ships of war of any
Power (Article XI), intended to protect Russia from such
a contingency. But a state of war between Russia and
a majority (including Turkey) of the signatory Powers
would bring the Treaty of Paris practically into abeyance,
and would expose Russia's Black Sea coast to immediate
attack. Moreover, there was some inconsistency between
Article XI of the Treaty of Paris, which neutralized the
Black Sea, and Article I of the annexed Convention
(having the same force as the Treaty of Paris), which
allowed the Porte to admit foreign ships of war to the
Dardanelles and Bosphorus, when the Porte itself was at
war. It was of no use to neutralize the Black Sea in one
Article, and in another to authorize Turkey to pass ships
of war into it. The Treaty of 1871 was therefore consistent
and reasonable : it left Article I of the Black Sea Con-
vention in force, i.e. the Straits were to remain closed
to foreign ships of war while the Porte was at peace ;
and in order that the south coast of Russia and her com-
merce in the Black Sea might not be at the mercy of the
Turks during war, Russia was authorized to fortify herself
there, and maintain a navy. Turkey, of course, was given
the same authorization.
2. Turkey was not merely authorized to pass foreign
ships of war through the Straits in time of war, but also
(Article II of the 1871 Treaty) in time of peace, ' in case
the Sublime Porte should judge it necessary in order to
secure the execution of the stipulations of the Treaty of
Paris of the 30 March 1856 '. It is very difficult to see
what stipulations are referred to, but the new rule was
probably made to prevent Russia from contending (as she
did in her circular of October 31, 1870) that the Treaty
of Paris had been broken, if Turkey, bona fide, admitted a
320 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
foreign war-ship into the Straits, with a view, for instance,
to the protection of foreign subjects, during some local
disturbance.
3. The stipulation of the 1856 Treaty (Article XIV) that
it could not be changed without the consent of the signatory
Powers was omitted, probably because such a statement
was otiose, and seemed to imply that treaties which
contained no such stipulation could be changed by one
party without the consent of the other party or parties.1
Finally, the Treaty of 1871 contained certain Articles
about the Danube. The Paris Treaty of 1856,2 it will be
remembered, set up a European Commission, to undertake
necessary works in the channels below Isatcha. A Rive-
rain Commission was also set up (on paper), consisting of
representatives of the riparian Powers, to deal with the
whole course of the river. The European Commission was
to do its work and to be dissolved when the work was
completed, as was expected to happen within two years.
But it had not been dissolved, and the Riverain Commis-
sion never came into existence. The Treaty of 1871
extended the duration of the Danube European Commission
to the year 1883, and by Article IV it provided for the
assembling, wrongly referred to as re-assembling, of the
Riverain Commission. But the Riverain Commission still
remained in abeyance. While the life of the European
Commission has been extended from period to period, the
execution of works above its boundary (Braila) has been
carried out separately by the States which are directly
interested.
The Treaty of Paris, 1856, was accepted by the Turks
as a great charter of liberty, securing the Porte from any
interference from the troublesome Powers of Europe.
For by the treaty the Powers had guaranteed the inde-
pendence and territorial integrity of Turkey, had admitted
» Cp. the Declaration signed at London, January 17, 1871 (see
above, p. 11.) * Article XVI.
INTERNAL AFFAIRS OF TURKEY 321
her to the Concert of Europe (i.e. had put her upon the
same footing as any other European State), and had
solemnly stated that they had no right ' to interfere, either
collectively or separately, in the relations of His Majesty
the Sultan with his subjects, nor in the Internal Administra-
tion of his Empire ' (Article IX).
It is true that the Sultan had also in Article IX of the
Treaty of Paris proclaimed ' his constant solicitude for the
welfare of his subjects ', and ' his generous intentions
towards the Christian population of his Empire ', and had
referred to the Firman (the Hatti-Hamouin) 1 which he
had issued in the previous month, laying down an excellent
scheme of reform. But this Firman, ' emanating spon-
taneously from his Sovereign will/ was not itself a part
of or annexed to the Treaty of Paris, and so the Powers
had no legal ground on which to force the Sultan to observe
it. Accordingly, during the following twenty years, the
internal administration of the Turkish Government and
its attitude towards its Christian subjects do not appear
to have improved. When in August 1875, an insurrection
of the Christians in Herzegovina broke out, the Eastern
Question was again revived in its acutest form.
There is no doubt that the condition of the Christian
provinces of Turkey was sufficiently bad to justify some
pressure being put on the Porte by the Powers of Europe.
Yet, as the Porte was not slow to point out, the Powers
had bound themselves, by Article IX of the Treaty of
Paris, not to interfere in the internal affairs of Turkey.
Moreover, there was another difficulty in the way of con-
certed action by the Powers : they all wished Turkey to
reform its administration, but they did not all wish
Turkey's independence or territory to be decreased. It
was, especially, the view of the British Government, that
the maintenance of the Turkish Empire was necessary to
the Balance of Power in the Near East.
1 February 18, 1856; Hertslet, vol. ii. No. 263.
1903 v
322 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
Yet in some degree, circumstances were propitious for
bringing pressure to bear on Turkey, in such a way as
might have prevented war. The three great Empires,
Austria, Russia, and the new German Empire, were at
this time acting in accord. The Russian and German
Chancellors had long been friends, and acted in concert
in important matters of State,1 and Austria had learned
to acquiesce in the facts of 1866 and 1870, to recognize
that the leadership of Germany had passed to Prussia,
and that her great interests now lay in the south-east.
Thus Count Andrassy, the Austrian Chancellor, was able
in January 1876 to draw up, in concert with Russia and
Germany, the now famous ' Andrassy Note ', demanding
that Turkey should establish complete religious toleration
within her dominions, do away with the system of tax-
farming, and set up a mixed Commission of native Chris-
tians and Mohammedans to superintend the execution of
the reforms.2 To this Note Great Britain and France also
gave their adherence. But when in May (1876) at Berlin
the ministers of the three Empires drew up a much firmer
Note — the Berlin Memorandum — the British Government
declined to take part in it, being very suspicious of anything
likely to prove ' contrary to the Treaty Rights of the Porte
or subversive of the Sultan's authority '.3 The British
Government at this time hoped that Turkey might be
induced to reform itself without coercion. The clear
intention of the English Premier Disraeli to maintain the
independence of Turkey might have prevented the war
between Russia and the Porte, had not the Turks them-
selves, by their brutal conduct while repressing the Bul-
garian insurrection in May 1876, succeeded in alienating
the sympathy of a great portion of the British people.
' The knife of the Circassian and Bachi-Bazouk had severed
1 See p. 317.
* The complete Note is in Hertslet, vol. iv, No. 456.
* Ibid., Nos. 461, 462.
BALKAN STATES
English Miles
O SO ' IOO 200
IT S T R I
B O S N I A
BULGARIA
Tirnovo °
Burgas
'eded to Bulgaria Oy the. . .
,f London fHay SO^iatJ.reCroc^Ooi
to Turhry Sept. 29^ 1913.
Slate frontier*
Old -
Y 2
324 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
the bond with Great Britain which had saved Turkey in
1854-' x
Serbia and Montenegro declared war on Turkey in July
1876. The Russian Government openly proclaimed its
sympathy with them. Yet the Tsar Alexander II assured
Great Britain that he had no intention of acquiring terri-
tory : that all he desired was concerted action to induce
Turkey to carry out reforms. Great Britain, agreeing to
this, proposed a Conference of the Powers at Constantinople.
This took place in December and January 1876-7, and
a sensible scheme of reform was drawn up. But to ensure
that the reforms would not be put off indefinitely by the
Porte, it was also proposed that they should be put into
effect by an international commission and gendarmerie.
The Turkish Government refused this, pointing out that
interference by an international commission with the
administration of the Ottoman Empire would be a direct
breach of the Treaty of Paris. After receiving this answer,
the Powers (in order to keep the adherence of England)
proposed a milder document to the Porte, omitting any
mention of an international commission, but stating that
if reforms were not carried out, the Powers would decide
in common on the means to be pursued. The Porte
regarded this document also as being against the Treaty
of Paris. So as no effective guarantees for reform were
to be gained by peaceful means, Russia declared war on
April 24, 1877.
The war did not last very long, but there was much
hard fighting before the Russian Army entered Adrianople
on January 20, 1878. Even before this happened, the
Porte had recognized its defeat, and had asked the other
Powers of Europe to mediate. Constantinople lay at the
mercy of the Russians, and the fear which had haunted
British statesmen for nearly a century seemed only too
likely to be realized. For a few weeks it looked as if war
1 Fyfe, Modern Europe, 1895, p. 1029.
TREATY OF SAN STEFANO 325
between Russia and England could not be averted ; on
February 6, 1878, the British fleet went through the
Dardanelles into the Sea of Marmara. Fortunately the
more peaceful counsels prevailed, and a breathing-space
was secured by both sides agreeing for the time being to
hold their hands. Thirteen days after the British fleet
passed the Dardanelles, the Russian ambassador in London
communicated the following message to Lord Derby, the
English Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs : ' Prince
Gorchakov authorizes me by telegraph to declare to your
Excellency that the Imperial Cabinet maintains its pro-
mise not to occupy Gallipoli nor to enter the lines of
Bulair. The Imperial Cabinet expects in return that no
English troops should be landed on the Asiatic or European
coast.' J
Meanwhile Turkey and Russia were in negotiation.
On March 3, at the village of San Stefano, on the European
shore of the Sea of Marmara, the well-known Treaty of
San Stefano was concluded.
For years this treaty has acted as a kind of magnet to the
Bulgarian people, for it was they who would have benefited
by it, not Russia. The Bulgarians till 1878 were merely
a subject race of Turkey, governed by Turkish officials,
without any autonomy, and hardly conscious themselves
that they were a people. The Treaty of San Stefano
would have made them a large State, tributary to Turkey
indeed, but as large as the mediaeval Bulgarian Empire,
the memory of which is kept so green among them as
a spur to their ambition. Bulgaria under the Treaty of
San Stefano would have stretched from the Danube to
the Aegean, and would have included practically all
Macedonia, except Salonika. The other Powers, however,
objected. Austria did not relish the idea of a powerful
Slav State lying across her path to the Aegean. Great
1 Count Schouvaloff to the Earl of Derby, February 19, 1878.
Hertslet, vol. iv, No. 517.
32f> TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
Britain feared that 'the big Bulgaria would be merely
a client State of Russia. To settle these difficulties a con-
gress was suggested. Russia accepted the proposal, and
accordingly the famous Congress of Berlin came together
on June 13, 1878. In this Congress Great Britain sat as
the ally of Turkey. On June 4, Disraeli had concluded
a treaty with the Sublime Porte. According to this,
Turkey gave over to Great Britain the occupation and
administration of Cyprus. Britain, on her part, engaged
in the future to defend Turkey's position against Russia
in Asia.1
The Treaty of Berlin was concluded on July 13, 1878.
Every Article of it is of the highest importance, and
although it has subsequently been, in many respects,
modified, broken and changed, it still remains the ground-
plan of the States-system of South-East Europe. In
order to appreciate its importance it is necessary not
merely that each Article should be carefully studied, but
that the previous history of each Balkan State that was
then recognized or established should be fully understood.
The first alteration of the Treaty of Berlin came in
1886. The new State of Bulgaria extended only from the
Danube to the Balkans. Eastern Rumelia, the fertile
plain to the south of the Balkans, was a Turkish province
under a native Christian Governor. In 1886, however,
a revolution broke out in Philippopolis, in favour of union
with Bulgaria. Prince Alexander of Battenberg, the
Prince of Bulgaria, then led his army into Philippopolis
and hoisted the national flag.2 The Turkish Government
never formally admitted the cession of Eastern Rumelia,
but the province was in fact incorporated with Bulgaria,
1 Convention of Constantinople, June 4, 1878 ; Hertslet, vol. iv,
No. 524 ; Mowat, Select Treaties, pp. 78-9. Before the Congress met.
Russia and Great Britain had also settled their differences by a
Secret Convention signed on May 30. It was abstracted from the
Foreign Office by a copying clerk, and was published in the Globe
newspaper on June 14, the day after the Congress had assembled.
» See Act for modifying Articles XV and XVII of the Treaty of
Berlin, April 5, 1886 (Hertslet, No. 611).
THE BALKAN LEAGUE 327
and Rumeliots took their seat in the Sobranye, the Parlia-
ment, at Sofia. In the same year Russia denounced
Article LIX of the Berlin Treaty, which declared Batoum
to be purely a port of commerce.
The Berlin settlement was not seriously questioned
again till 1908. In the previous year the Revolution of
the Young Turks had occurred. Turkey became in theory a
constitutional monarchy, with strong military and national-
istic aims. Austria did not wait for further developments,
but on October 3 suddenly announced the annexation of
Bosnia and Herzegovina, contrary to Article XXV of the
Treaty of Berlin. On October 5, Prince Ferdinand of
Bulgaria proclaimed the complete independence of his
principality (the tribute to Turkey, as a matter of fact,
had never been paid), and erected it into a kingdom. On
September 29, 1911, the Italian Government began a war
with Turkey, ending with the annexation of Tripoli by the
Treaty of Lausanne, October 18, iqiz.1
In 1912 the First Balkan War broke out. The Balkan
League or Union of Bulgaria, Greece, Serbia, and Monte-
negro was formed early in 1912, through the efforts of King
Ferdinand of Bulgaria and the eminent Cretan politician,
Eleutherios Venizelos, who in 1910 had been chosen by
King George of Greece as Premier of the Greek Government.
The States of the Balkan League presented certain de-
mands to Turkey with regard to the territory and the
administration of Macedonia, which the Porte did not
concede, and accordingly war began on September 30,
1912, nearly three weeks before the Peace between Turkey
and Italy was concluded over the Tripolitana.
The course which the war took was a surprise to Europe,
and a surprise even to the Balkan States themselves, for
they conquered more land from Turkey than, apparently,
they had arranged to divide. Bulgaria took Adrianople and
penetrated down to the lines of Bulair which defend the
1 See Mowat, Select Treaties, pp. xliii-iv and pp. 83-7, 116-19.
328 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
Gallipoli Peninsula from the mainland. The Serbians won
most of Macedonia, and the Greeks entered Salonika. At
one time it looked as if the Bulgarians might take Con-
stantinople, but they were stopped at the Chatalja lines.
The usual difficulty was found in breaking off the war and
adjusting the claims of the Allies. An international
conference was invited to London by Sir Edward Grey,
the British Foreign Minister, and simultaneously the
plenipotentiaries of the Balkan States and Turkey met at
London. These conferences ended with the Treaty of
London, May 30, 1913, according to which Turkey ceded
to the Balkan Allies all her territory (except Albania) to
the west of the line Enos-Midia, and also the Island of
Crete.1
The next step was to arrange for the division of this
territory among the Allies themselves. The negotiations
for this ended in the Second Balkan War, of Bulgaria
against Greece and Serbia, begun on June 30 (1913). The
war was stopped by the intervention, after July 9, of
Roumania against Bulgaria. The Conference of Peace was
held at Bucharest. In the meantime Turkey had quietly
re-occupied Adrianople on July 20* The Treaty of
Bucharest was concluded on August 10, 1913. Bulgaria
did not lose much at the hands of the Balkan Allies.
Roumania extended her Dobruja frontier, but Bulgaria
was extended down to the Aegean at Dedeagach. Serbia
got a great part of Macedonia ; Greece got Salonika and
Kavalla. The Powers who had arranged the Treaty of
London thus saw their arrangements set aside. Great
Britain did not recognize the validity of the Treaty of
Bucharest. When, however, Bulgaria joined the Central
Powers in the European War on October 12, 1915,
1 See p. 112.
* Bulgaria retroceded Adrianople to Turkey by the Treaty of
Constantinople, September 29, 1913. (Nouveau Recueil, 3me seric,
tome viii.)
THE EUROPEAN WAR . 329
the attitude of Great Britain, France, and Russia towards
the Treaty of Bucharest naturally changed.
The European War, which began on August 2, 1914, was
not intended, as far as the Allies were concerned, to in-
volve any further modification of the Treaty of Berlin, or any
change in the territorial position of Turkey. On August 22,
1914, Great Britain, France, and Russia, on condition of
Turkey observing neutrality, engaged to ' give a joint
guarantee in writing that they will respect the independence
and integrity of Turkey ', and ' that no conditions in the
terms of peace at the end of the war shall prejudice this
independence and integrity '.* Turkey, however (against
the Treaty of Paris, 1856, and the Treaty of London, 1871),
had already, on August n, admitted the German warships
Goeben and Breslau into the Dardanelles without interning
them. On September 10, the Porte sent Notes to the Euro-
pean Governments announcing that the Capitulations by
which Turkey's behaviour to foreigners within her territory
was governed, were abolished. All the Powers protested
against this.2 On October 29 the Turkish fleet sank a
Russian gunboat at Odessa and bombarded Feodosia. This
act of war dissolved the Convention of Constantinople by
which Great Britain had allied herself to Turkey and received
the administration of Cyprus.3 The island was accordingly
declared to be annexed to Great Britain on November 5,
1914.
On December 19, of the same year, Egypt was declared
to be a British Protectorate.4
1 Sir Edward Grey to Sir L. Mallet, Correspondence respecting
Turkey, Parliamentary Papers, Cd. 7628 (1914), p. 9.
* Sir L. Mallet to Sir E. Grey, ibid., p. 23.
* June 4, 1878; see above, p. 326, and Mowat, Select Treaties,
p. 78.
« Ibid., p. 95.
330 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
TREATY BETWEEN GREAT BRITAIN, AUSTRIA, FRANCE,
GERMANY (PRUSSIA), ITALY, RUSSIA, AND TURKEY,
FOR THE REVISION OF CERTAIN STIPULATIONS OF THE
TREATIES OF 30TH MARCH 1856, RELATIVE TO THE
BLACK SEA AND DANUBE. SIGNED AT LONDON,
I3TH MARCH, iSyi.1
ARTICLE I. Articles XI, XIII, and XIV of the Treaty
of Paris of the 30th March 1856, as well as the special
Convention concluded between Russia and the Sublime
Porte, and annexed to the said Article XIV, are abrogated,
and replaced by the following Article.
ARTICLE II. The principle of the closing of the Straits
of the Dardanelles and the Bosphorus, such as it has been
established by the separate Convention of the 30th March
1856, is maintained, with power to His Imperial Majesty
the Sultan to open the said Straits in time of Peace to the
Vessels of War of friendly and allied Powers, in case the
Sublime Porte should judge it necessary in order to secure
the execution of the stipulations of the Treaty of Paris
of the 3oth March 1856.
ARTICLE III. The Black Sea remains open, as heretofore,
to the Mercantile Marine of all Nations.
ARTICLE IV. The Commission established by Article XVI
of the Treaty of Paris, in which the Powers who joined in
signing the Treaty are each represented by a delegate, and
which was charged with the designation and execution of
the works necessary below Isaktcha, to clear the Mouths
of the Danube, as well as the neighbouring parts of the
Black Sea, from the sands and other impediments which
obstruct them, in order to put that part of the River and
the said parts of the sea in the best state for navigation,
is maintained in its present composition. The duration of
that Commission is fixed for a further period of 12 years,
counting from the 24th April, 1871, that is to say, till the
24th April, 1883, being the term of the Redemption of the
Loan contracted by that Commission, under the Guarantee
of Great Britain, Germany, Austria-Hungary, France,
Italy, and Turkey.
ARTICLE V. The conditions of the re-assembling of the
Riverain Commission, established by Article XVII of the
1 State Papers, vol. Ixi, p. 7; Hertslet, vol.iii, No. 439.
TREATY OF LONDON, 1871 331
Treaty of Paris of the soth March 1856, shall be fixed by
a previous understanding between the Riverain Powers,
without prejudice to the clause relative to the 3 Danubian
Principalities ; and in so far as any modification of
Article XVII of the said Treaty may be involved, this
latter shall form the subject of a special Convention
between the co-signatory Powers.
ARTICLE VI. As the Powers which possess the shores of
that part of the Danube where the Cataracts and the
Iron Gates offer impediments to navigation reserve to
themselves to come to an understanding with the view of
removing those impediments, the High Contracting Parties
recognise from the present moment their right to levy
a Provisional Tax on Vessels of commerce of every flag
which may henceforth benefit thereby, until the extinction
of the Debt contracted for the execution of the Works ;
and they declare Article XV of the Treaty of Paris of 1856,
to be inapplicable to that part of the River for a space
of time necessary for the repayment of the debt in
question.
ARTICLE VII. All the Works and Establishments of
every kind created by the European Commission in execu-
tion of the Treaty of Paris of 1856, or of the present Treaty,
shall continue to enjoy the same Neutrality which has
hitherto protected them, and which shall be equally
respected for the future, under all circumstances, by the
High Contracting Parties. The benefits of the immunities
which result therefrom shall extend to the whole adminis-
trative and engineering staff of the Commission. It is,
however, well understood that the provisions of this Article
shall in no way affect the right of the Sublime Porte to
send, as heretofore, its Vessels of War into the Danube in
its character of Territorial Power.
ARTICLE VIII. The High Contracting Parties renew
and confirm all the stipulations of the Treaty of the 3oth
March, 1856, as well as of its annexes, which are not annulled
or modified by the present Treaty.
ARTICLE IX. The present Treaty shall be ratified, and
the Ratifications shall be exchanged at London in the term
of 6 weeks, or sooner if possible.
In witness whereof the respective Plenipotentiaries have
signed the same, and have affixed thereto the Seal of their
Arms.
332 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
Done at London, the I3th day of the month of March,
in the year 1871.
(L.S.) GRANVILLE.
(L.S.) BERNSTORFF.
(L.S.) APPONYI.
(L.S.) BROGLIE.
(L.S.) CADORNA.
(L.S.) BRUNNOW.
(L.S.) MUSURUS.
TREATY BETWEEN GREAT BRITAIN, AUSTRIA-HUNGARY,
FRANCE, GERMANY, ITALY, RUSSIA, AND TURKEY,
FOR THE SETTLEMENT OF THE AFFAIRS OF THE EAST.
SIGNED AT BERLIN, I3TH JULY, I878.1
Bulgaria. An Autonomous and Tributary Principality under
.Suzerainty of the Sultan. Christian Government. Na-
tional Militia.
ARTICLE I. Bulgaria is constituted an autonomous and
tributary Principality under the suzerainty of His Imperial
Majesty the Sultan ; it will have a Christian Government
and a national militia.
Bulgaria. Boundaries.
ARTICLE II. The Principality of Bulgaria will include
the following territories : —
Boundary between Bulgaria and Roumania. Silistria to
Mangalia.
The frontier follows on the north the right bank of the
Danube from the former frontier of Servia up to a point
to be determined by a European Commission to the east
of Silistria, and thence runs to the Black Sea to the south of
Mangalia, which is included in Roumanian territory. The
Black Sea forms the eastern boundary of Bulgaria.
Boundary between Bulgaria and Eastern Roumelia.
On the south the frontier follows upwards from its
mouth the mid-channel of the brook near which are
situated the villages of Hodzakioj, Selam-Kioj, AivadSik,
Kulibe, Sudzuluk ; crosses obliquely the valley of the Deli-
1 State Papers, vol. Ixix, p. 749 ; Hertslet, vol. iv. No. 530.
TREATY OF BERLIN, 1878 333
KamSik, passes south of Belibe and Kemhalik and north
of Hadzimahale after having crossed the Deli-Kamclk at
2^ kilom. above Cengei ; reaches the crest at a point
situated between Tekenlik and Aidos-Bredza, and follows
it by Karnabad Balkan, Prisevica Balkan, Kazan Balkan
to the north of Kotel as far as Demir Kapu. It proceeds
by the principal chain of the Great Balkan, the whole
length of which it follows up to the summit of Kosica.
There it leaves the crest of the Balkan, descends south-
wards between the villages of Pirtop and Duzanci, the one
being left to Bulgaria and the other to Eastern Roumelia,
as far as the brook of Tuzlu Dere, follows that stream to
its junction with the Topolnica, then the latter river until
it meets the Smovskio Dere near the village of Petricevo,
leaving to Eastern Roumelia a zone with a radius of 2
kilom. above that junction, ascends between the brooks of
Smovskio Dere and the Kamenica, following the line of
the watershed so as to turn to the south-west at the level
of Voinjak and reach directly the point 875 of the Austrian
Staff map.
The frontier line cuts at right angles the upper basin of
the brook of Ichtiman Dere, passes between Bogdina and
Karaula, so as to rejoin the line of the watershed separating
the basins of the Isker and the Marica, between Camurli
and HadSilar, follows that line by the summits of Velina
Mogila, the ' col ' 531, Zmailica Vrh, Sumnatica, and
rejoins the administrative boundary of the Sandjak of
Sofia between Sivri Tag and Cadir Tepe.
Boundary between Bulgaria and Turkey (Macedonia).
From Cadir Tepe, the frontier, taking a south-westerly
direction, follows the watershed between the basins of the
Mesta Karasu on the one side, and the Struma Karasu on
the other, runs along the crests of the mountains of Rhodope
called Demir Kapu, Iskoftepe, Kadimesar Balkan, and
Aiji Gediik up to Kapetnik Balkan, and thus joins the
former administrative frontier of the Sandjak of Sofia.
From Kapetnik Balkan the frontier is indicated by the
watershed between the valleys of the Rilska reka and of
the Bistrica reka, and follows the ridge called Vodenica
Planina, descending into the valley of the Struma at the
junction of this river with the Rilska reka, leaving the
village of Barakli to Turkey. It ascends then south of
334 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
the village of JeleSnica, and reaches by the shortest line
the chain of Golema Planina at the summit of Gitka, and
rejoins there the former administrative frontier of the
Sandjak of Sofia, leaving, however, to Turkey the whole
of the basin of the Suha reka.
From Mount Gitka the western frontier goes towards
Mount Crni Vrh by the mountains of Karvena Jabuka,
following the former administrative limit of the Sandjak
of Sofia in the upper part of the basins of Egrisu and of
the Lepnica, ascends with it the crests of Babina Polana,
and reaches Mount Crni Vrh.
Boundary between Bulgaria and Servia.
From Mount Crni Vrh the frontier follows the watershed
between the Struma and the Morava by the summits of
the StreSer, Vilogolo, and Me§id Planina, rejoins by the
Gaclna, Crna Trava, Darkovska, and Drainica Plan, then
the Decani Kladanec, the watershed of the High Sukowa
and of the Morava, goes straight to the Stol, and descends
from it so as to cut the road from Sofia to Pirot, 1,000
metres north-west of the village of Segusa. It ascends in
a straight line the Vidlic Planina and thence Mount Rado-
cina in the chain of the Kodza Balkan, leaving to Servia
the village of Doikinci, and to Bulgaria that of Senakos.
From the summit of Mount Radoclna the frontier follows
towards the west the crest of the Balkans by Ciprovec
Balkan and Stara Planina up to the former eastern frontier
(I'ancienne frontiere orientate) of the Principality of Servia,
near to the Kula Smiljova Cuka, and thence that former
frontier as far as the Danube, which it rejoins at Rako-
vitza.
Bulgaria. Delimitation by European Commission. Balkan
Frontiers of Eastern Roumelia. Non-erection of Forti-
fications.
This delimitation shall be fixed on the spot by the
European Commission, on which the Signatory Powers
shall be represented. It is understood —
1. That this Commission will take into consideration
the necessity for His Imperial Majesty the Sultan to be
able to defend the Balkan frontiers of Eastern Roumelia.
2. That no fortifications may be erected within a radius
of 10 kilom. from Samakow.
TREATY OF BERLIN, 1878 335
Bulgaria. Election of Prince. Exclusion of Members of
Reigning Dynasties of Great European Powers.
ARTICLE III. The Prince of Bulgaria shall be freely
elected by the population and confirmed by the Sublime
Porte, with the assent of the Powers. No member of the
Reigning Dynasties of the Great European Powers may be
elected Prince of Bulgaria.
Bulgaria. Election of Prince in case of a Vacancy.
In case of a vacancy in the princely dignity, the election
of the new Prince shall take place under the same con-
ditions and with the same forms.
Bulgaria. Assembly of Notables to draw up Organic Law at
Tirnovo.
ARTICLE IV. An Assembly of Notables of Bulgaria,
convoked at Tirnovo, shall, before the election of the
Prince, draw up the Organic Law of the Principality.
Rights and Interests of different Populations to be considered.
In the districts where Bulgarians are intermixed with
Turkish, Roumanian, Greek, or other populations, the
rights and interests of these populations shall be taken
into consideration as regards the elections and the drawing
up of the Organic Law
Bulgaria. Basis of Public Law.
ARTICLE V. The following points shall form the basis
of the public law of Bulgaria : —
Bulgaria. Civil and Political Rights. Exercise of Professions
and Industries by all, irrespective of Religious Creeds.
The difference of religious creeds and confessions shall
not be alleged against any person as a ground for exclusion
or incapacity in matters relating to the enjoyment of civil
and political rights, admission to public employments,
functions, and honours, or the exercise of the various pro-
fessions and industries in any locality whatsoever.
336 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
Bulgaria. Freedom of Religious Worship.
The freedom and outward exercise of all forms of worship
are assured to all persons belonging to Bulgaria, as well as
to foreigners, and no hindrance shall be offered either to
the hierarchical organization of the different communions,
or to their relations with their spiritual chiefs.
Bulgaria. Provisional Administration by a Russian Com-
missary, assisted by a Turkish Commissary and by
Consuls delegated by the Powers, until completion of
Organic Law.
ARTICLE VI. The provisional administration of Bulgaria
shall be under the direction of an Imperial Russian Com-
missary until the completion of the Organic Law. An
Imperial Turkish Commissary, as well as the Consuls
delegated ad hoc by the other Powers, signatory of the
present Treaty, shall be called to assist him so as to control
the working of this provisional regime. In case of dis-
agreement amongst the Consular Delegates, the vote of
the majority shall be accepted, and in case of a divergence
between the majority and the Imperial Russian Com-
missary or the Imperial Turkish Commissary, the Repre-
sentatives of the Signatory Powers at Constantinople,
assembled in Conference, shall give their decision.
Bulgaria. Provisional Regime not to extend beyond Nine
Months.
ARTICLE VII. The provisional regime shall not be pro-
longed beyond a period of nine months from the exchange
of the ratifications of the present Treaty.
Bulgaria. Prince to be elected as soon as Organic Law is
completed.
When the Organic Law is completed the election of the
Prince of Bulgaria shall be proceeded with immediately.
As soon as the Prince shall have been installed, the new
organization shall be put into force, and the Principality
shall enter into the full enjoyment of its autonomy.
TREATY OF BERLIN, 1878 337
Bulgaria. Commercial Treaties, &c., between Foreign Powers
and the Porte, to remain in force.
ARTICLE VIII. The Treaties of Commerce and of
Navigation as well as all the Conventions and arrange-
ments concluded between Foreign Powers and the Porte,
and now in force, are maintained in the Principality of
Bulgaria, and no change shall be made in them with
regard to any Power without its previous consent.
Bulgaria. No Transit Duties to be levied.
No transit duties shall be levied in Bulgaria on goods
passing through that Principality.
Bulgaria. Equality of treatment for the Subjects, Citizens,
and Commerce of all the Powers.
The subjects and citizens and commerce of all the
Powers shall be treated in the Principality on a footing
of strict equality.
Bulgaria. Immunities and Privileges of Foreigners. Consular
Jurisdiction and Protection.
The immunities and privileges of foreigners, as well as
the rights of Consular jurisdiction and protection as
established by the Capitulations and usages, shall remain
in full force so long as they shall not have been modified
with the consent of the parties concerned.
Bulgaria. Tribute to Suzerain Court. Amount to be fixed by
Signatory Powers.
ARTICLE IX. The amount of the annual Tribute which
the Principality of Bulgaria shall pay to the Suzerain
Court — such amount being paid into whatever bank the
Porte may hereafter designate — shall be fixed by an
agreement between the Powers Signatory of the present
Treaty at the close of the first year of the working of the
new organization. This Tribute shall be calculated on the
mean revenue of the territory of the Principality.
1903
338 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
Bulgaria. Portion of Ottoman Public Debt to be paid by the
Principality.
As Bulgaria is to bear a portion of the Public Debt of
the Empire, when the Powers fix the Tribute, they shall
take into consideration what portion of that Debt can, on
the basis of a fair proportion, be assigned to the Princi-
pality.
Bulgaria. Acceptance of Obligations towards Rustchuck-
Varna Railway Company.
ARTICLE X. Bulgaria takes the place of the Imperial
Ottoman Government in its undertakings and obligations
towards the Rustchuck- Varna Railway Company, dating
from the exchange of the ratifications of the present
Treaty. The settlement of the previous accounts is reserved
for an understanding between the Sublime Porte, the
Government of the Principality, and the administration
of this Company.
Bulgaria. Acceptance of Obligations in respect of other
Railways of European Turkey in Principality.
The Principality of Bulgaria likewise, so far as it is con-
cerned, takes the place of the Sublime Porte in the
engagements which the latter has contracted, as well
towards Austria-Hungary as towards the Company, for
working the Railways of European Turkey in respect to
the completion and connexion, as well as the working of
the Railways situated in its territory.
Bulgaria. Railway Conventions to be concluded with Austria-
Hungary, the Porte, and Servia.
The Conventions necessary for the settlement of these
questions shall be concluded between Austria-Hungary,
the Porte, Servia, and the Principality of Bulgaria imme-
diately after the conclusion of peace.
Bulgaria. Turkish Evacuation. Demolition of Fortresses.
ARTICLE XI. The Ottoman army shall no longer remain
in Bulgaria ; all the old fortresses shall be razed at the
expense of the Principality within one year or sooner if
possible ; the local Government shall immediately take
steps for their demolition, and shall not construct fresh
ones.
TREATY OF BERLIN, 1878 339
Bulgaria. Disposal of War Material, &c., in Fortresses of
Danube, Shumla, and Varna.
The Sublime Porte shall have the right of disposing as
it likes of the war material and other effects belonging to
the Ottoman Government which may have remained in
the fortresses of the Danube already evacuated in virtue
of the Armistice of the 3ist January, as well as of those
in the strongholds of Shumla and Varna.
Bulgaria. Right of Non-resident Mussulman Proprietors
and others to hold Real Property.
ARTICLE XII. Mussulman proprietors or others who
may take up their abode outside the Principality may
continue to hold there their real property, by farming it
out, or having it administered by third parties.
Bulgaria. State Property and Religious Foundations
(Vakoufs). Appointment of a Tut 'co-Bulgarian Commis-
sion.
A Turco-Bulgarian Commission shall be appointed to
settle, within a period of two years, all questions relative
to the mode of alienation, working, or use on the account
of the Sublime Porte, of property belonging to the State
and religious foundations (Vakoufs), as well as of the
questions regarding the interests of private persons engaged
therein.
Bulgarians travelling or dwelling in other parts of Turkey,
subject to Ottoman Authorities and Laws.
Persons belonging to the Principality of Bulgaria, who
shall travel or dwell in the other parts of the Ottoman
Empire, shall be subject to the Ottoman authorities and
laws.
Eastern Roumelia. Formation of Province under a Christian
Governor-General.
ARTICLE XIII. A province is formed south of the Balkans
which will take the name of ' Eastern Roumelia ', and will
remain under the direct political and military authority
of His Imperial Majesty the Sultan, under conditions of
administrative autonomy. It shall have a Christian
Governor-General.
z 2
340 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
Eastern Roumdia. Boundaries.
ARTICLE XIV. Eastern Roumelia is bounded on the
north and north-west by Bulgaria, and comprises the
territories included by the following line : —
Boundary between Eastern Roumelia and Bulgaria.
Starting from the Black Sea the frontier follows upwards
from its mouth the mid-channel of the brook near which
are situated the villages of HodSakioj, Selam-Kioj, Aivadsik,
Kulibe, SudSuluk, crosses obliquely the Valley of the Deli
Kamclk, passes south of Belibe and Kemhalik, and north
of HadSimahale, after having crossed the Deli-KamSik at
2^ kilom. above Cengei ; reaches the crest at a point
situated between Tekenlik and Aidos-Bredza, and follows
it by Karnabad Balkan, Prisevica Balkan, Kazan Balkan
to the north of Kotel as far as Demir Kapu. It proceeds
by the principal chain of the Great Balkan, the whole
length of which it follows up to the summit of Kosica.
At this point the western frontier of Roumelia leaves
the crest of the Balkan, descends southwards between the
villages of Pirtop and Duzanci — the one being left to
Bulgaria and the other to Eastern Roumelia, as far as the
brook of Tuzlu Dere, follows that stream to its junction
with the Topolnica, then the latter river until it meets
the Smovskio Dere near the village of Petric'evo, leaving
to Eastern Roumelia a zone with a radius of 2 kilom.
above that junction, ascends between the brooks of Smov-
skio Dere and the Kamenica, following the line of the
watershed so as to turn to the south-west at the level of
Voinjak and reach directly the point 875 of the Austrian
Staff map.
The frontier line cuts at right angles the upper basin of
the brook of Ichtiman Dere, passes between Bogdina and
Karaula, so as to rejoin the line of the watershed separating
the basins of the Isker and the Marica, between Camurli
and HadSilar, follows that line by the summits of Velina
Mogila, the ' col ' 531, Zmailica Vrh, Sumnatica, and
rejoins the administrative boundary of the Sandjak of
Sofia between Sivri Tas and Cadir Tepe.
TREATY OF BERLIN, 1878 341
Southern Boundary of Eastern Roumelia.
The frontier of Roumelia leaves that of Bulgaria at
Mount Cadir Tepe, following the line of the watershed
between the basins of the Maritza and of its affluents on
one side, and of the Mesta Karasu and of its affluents on
the other, and takes the direction south-east and then
south along the crest of the Despoto Dagh Mountains,
towards Mount Kruschowa (whence starts the frontier line
of the Treaty of San Stefano).
From Mount Kruschowa the frontier is the same as the
line laid down by the Treaty of San Stefano, that is to say,
the chain of the Black Balkans (Kara Balkan), the moun-
tains Kulaghy-Dagh, Eschek-Tschepellii, Karakolas, and
Ischiklar, from whence it descends due south-east till it
reaches the River Arda, and follows the mid-channel of
this river up to a point close to the village of Adacali,
which remains to Turkey.
From this point the frontier line ascends the crest of the
Bestepe-Dagh, which it follows, then descends and crosses
the Maritza, at a point situated 5 kilom. above the bridge
of Mustafa Pasha ; thence it takes a northerly direction
by the line of the watershed between DemirhanU Dere and
the small affluents of the Maritza to Kiideler Bair, whence
it runs east to Sakar Bair ; from this point it crosses the
valley of the Tundza in the direction of Biijiik Derbend,
which is left to the north, as also is Soudzak. From Biijiik
Derbend it regains the line of the watershed between the
affluents of the Tundia on the north and those of the
Maritza on the south, up to the level of Kaibilar, which is
included in Eastern Roumelia, and passes to the south of
V. Almali between the basin of the Maritza to the south
and the various streams which flow straight into the Black
Sea, between the villages of Belevrin and Alatli ; it follows
to the north of Karanlik the crests of Vosna and Zuvak,
the line which separates the waters of the Duka and those
of the Karagac-Su, and rejoins the Black Sea between
those two rivers.
Eastern Roumelia. Right of Sultan. Fortifications on
Frontiers (Balkan Passes).
ARTICLE XV. His Majesty the Sultan shall have the
right of providing for the defence of the land and sea
frontiers of the province by erecting fortifications on those
frontiers, and maintaining troops there.
342 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
Eastern Roumelia. Maintenance of Internal Order. Irregular
Troops, Bashi-Bazouks, and Circassians.
Internal order is maintained in Eastern Roumelia by
a native gendarmerie assisted by a local militia.
In forming these corps, the officers of which are nomi-
nated by the Sultan, regard shall be paid in the different
localities to the religion of the inhabitants.
His Imperial Majesty the Sultan undertakes not to
employ irregular troops, such as Bashi-Bazouks and
Circassians, in the garrisons of the frontiers. The regular
troops detailed for this service must not in any case be
billeted on the inhabitants. When they pass through the
province they shall not make a stay there.
Eastern Roumelia. Right to summon Ottoman Troops in
case of need. Powers to be informed.
ARTICLE XVI. The Governor-General shall have the
right of summoning the Ottoman troops in the event of
the internal or external security of the province being
threatened. In such an eventuality the Sublime Porte
shall inform the Representatives of the Powers at Con-
stantinople of such a decision, as well as of the exigencies
which justify it.
Eastern Roumelia. Governor-General to be nominated by the
Porte, with assent of Powers, for Five Years.
ARTICLE XVII. The Governor-General of Eastern Rou-
melia shall be nominated by the Sublime Porte, with the
assent of the Powers, for a term of five years.
Eastern Roumelia. Appointment of European Commission
to arrange organization. Duties of Commission.
ARTICLE XVIII. Immediately after the exchange of the
ratifications of the present Treaty, a European Commission
shall be formed to arrange, in concert with the Ottoman
Porte, the organization of Eastern Roumelia. This Com-
mission will have to determine, within three months, the
powers and functions of the Governor-General, as well as
the administrative, judicial, and financial system of the
province, taking as its basis the various laws for the
vilayets and the proposals made in the eighth sitting of
the Conference of Constantinople.
TREATY OF BERLIN, 1878 343
i ^
Eastern Roumelia. Firman to be communicated to the Powers.
The whole of the arrangements determined on for
Eastern Roumelia shall form the subject of an Imperial
Firman, which will be issued by the Sublime Porte, and
which it will communicate to the Powers.
Eastern Roumelia. European Commission to administer
Finances of Province.
ARTICLE XIX. The European Commission shall be
charged to administer, in concert with the Sublime Porte,
the finances of the province until the completion of the
new organization.
Eastern Roumelia. Treaties, &c., between Foreign Powers
and the Porte, to remain in force. Immunities and
Privileges of Foreigners. Religious Liberty.
ARTICLE XX. The Treaties, Conventions, and inter-
national arrangements of any kind whatsoever, concluded
or to be concluded between the Porte and foreign Powers,
shall apply in Eastern Roumelia as in the whole Ottoman
Empire. The immunities and privileges acquired by
foreigners, whatever their status, shall be respected in
this province. The Sublime Porte undertakes to enforce
there the general laws of the Empire on religious liberty
in favour of all forms of worship.
Eastern Roumelia. Rights and Obligations of Turkey with
regard to Railways.
ARTICLE XXI. The rights and obligations of the Sub-
lime Porte with regard to the Railways of Eastern Roumelia
are maintained in their integrity.
Bulgaria and Eastern Roumelia. Russian Occupation.
ARTICLE XXII. The strength of the Russian corps of
occupation in Bulgaria and Eastern Roumelia, which shall
be composed of six divisions of infantry and two divisions
of cavalry, shall not exceed 50,000 men. It shall be main-
tained at the expense of the country occupied. The army
of occupation will preserve its communications with Russia
not only through Roumania, in accordance with arrange-
ments to be concluded between the two States, but also
344 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
through the ports of the Black Sea, Varna, and Bourgas,
where it may, during the period of occupation, organize
the necessary depdts.
Bulgaria and Eastern Roumelia. Period of Occupation.
The period of the occupation of Eastern Roumelia and
Bulgaria by the Imperial Russian troops is fixed at nine
months from the date of the exchange of the ratifications
of the present Treaty.
Roumania. Period for Russian Evacuation.
The Imperial Russian Government undertakes that
within a further period of three months the passage of its
troops across Roumania shall cease, and that Principality
shall be completely evacuated.
Crete. Application of Organic Law of 1868.
ARTICLE XXIII. The Sublime Porte undertakes scru-
pulously to apply in the Island of Crete the Organic Law
of 1868 with such modifications as may be considered
equitable.
Organic Laws. Laws similar to Organic Law for Crete to
be introduced into other parts of Turkey in Europe,
except exemption from Taxation.
Similar laws adapted to local requirements, excepting as
regards the exemption from taxation granted to Crete,
shall also be introduced into the other parts of Turkey in
Europe for which no special organization has been provided
by the present Treaty.
Organic Laws. Special Commission to settle details of
new Laws.
The Sublime Porte shall depute special Commissions, in
which the native element shall be largely represented, to
settle the details of the new laws in each province.
The schemes of organization resulting from these labours
shall be submitted for examination to the Sublime Porte,
which, before promulgating the Acts for putting them into
force, shall consult the European Commission instituted
for Eastern Roumelia.
TREATY OF BERLIN, 1878 345
Greece. Rectification of Frontier. Powers may offer Media-
tion in case of Disagreement between Turkey and Greece.
ARTICLE XXIV. In the event of the Sublime Porte and
Greece being unable to agree upon the rectification of
frontier suggested in the i3th Protocol of the Congress
of Berlin, Germany, Austria-Hungary, France, Great
Britain, Italy, and Russia reserve to themselves to offer
their mediation to the two parties to facilitate negotiations.
Bosnia and Herzegovina. To be occupied and administered
by Austria-Hungary, Sandjak of Novi-Bazar excepted,
with right of Austria- Hungary to keep Garrisons, and to
have Military and Commercial Roads.
ARTICLE XXV. The Provinces of Bosnia and Herze-
govina shall be occupied and administered by Austria-
Hungary. The Government of Austria-Hungary, not
desiring to undertake the administration of the Sandjak
of Novi-Bazar, which extends between Servia and Monte-
negro in a south-easterly direction to the other side of
Mitrovitza, the Ottoman Administration will continue to
exercise its functions there. Nevertheless, in order to
assure the maintenance of the new political state of affairs,
as well as freedom and security of communications, Austria-
Hungary reserves the right of keeping garrisons and having
military and commercial roads in the whole of this part
of the ancient Vilayet of Bosnia.1 To this end the Govern-
ments of Austria-Hungary and Turkey reserve to them-
selves to come to an understanding on the details.
Montenegro. Independence.
ARTICLE XXVI. The independence of Montenegro is
recognized by the Sublime Porte and by all those of the
High Contracting Parties who had not hitherto admitted it.
Montenegro. Conditions : — Civil and Political Rights, &c.
Exercise of Professions and Industries by all, irrespective
of Religious Creeds.
ARTICLE XXVII. The High Contracting Parties are
agreed on the following conditions : —
In Montenegro the difference of religious creeds and con-
1 The Austrian garrisons were withdrawn fiom the Sandjak in
1908. In 1913 the district was divided between Serbia and Monte-
negro after the conclusion of the Second Balkan War.
346 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
fessions shall not be alleged against any person as a ground
for exclusion or incapacity in matters relating to the
enjoyment of civil and political rights, admission to public
employments, functions, and honours, or the exercise of
the various professions and industries in any locality
whatsoever.
Montenegro. Freedom of Religious Worship.
The freedom and outward exercise of all forms of worship
shall be assured to all persons belonging to Montenegro, as
well as to foreigners, and no hindrance shall be offered
either to the hierarchical organization of the different
communions, or to their relations with their spiritual
chiefs.
Montenegro. Boundaries.
ARTICLE XXVIII. The new frontiers of Montenegro are
fixed as follows : —
Starting at Ilino-brdo to the north of Klobuk, the line
descends to the Trebinjcica towards Grancarevo, which
remains to Herzegovina, then ascends the course of that
river up to a point I kilom. below its confluence with the
Cepelica, and from thence passes by the most direct line
on to the heights which border the River Trebinjcica. It
then proceeds in the direction of Pilatova, leaving that
village to Montenegro, and continues along the heights in
a northerly direction, maintaining as far as possible
a distance of 6 kilom. from the Bilek-Korito-Gacko road,
up to the 'col' between the Somina Planina and Mount
Curilo, whence it proceeds in an easterly direction by
Vratkovici, leaving this village to Herzegovina, up to
Mount Orline. Starting from this point the frontier,
leaving Ravno to Montenegro, goes straight to the north-
north-east, crossing the summits of the Lebergnik and of
the Volujak, then descends by the shortest line on to the
River Piva, which it crosses, and rejoins the River Tara,
passing between Crkvica and Nedvina. From this point
it ascends the Tara to Mojkovac, from which place it
passes along the crest of the ridge as far as SiSkojezero.
Leaving this point, it coincides with the former frontier
as far as the village of Sekulare. From there the new
frontier passes along the crests of the Mokra Planina, the
village of Mokra remaining to Montenegro ; it then reaches
TREATY OF BERLIN, 1878 347
the point 2166 on the Austrian Staff Map, following the
principal chain and the line of the watershed between the
Lim on the one side, and the Drin as well as the Cievna
(Zem) on the other.
It then coincides with the existing boundaries between
the tribe of the Kuci-Drekalovici on one side, and the
Kucka-Krajna, as well as the tribes of the Klementi and
Grudi, on the other, to the plain of Podgorica, from whence
it proceeds towards Plavnica, leaving the Klementi, Grudi,
and Hoti tribes to Albania.
Thence the new frontier crosses the lake near the Islet
of Gorica-Topal, and, from Gorica-Topal, takes a straight
line to the top of the crest, whence it follows the watershed
between Megured and Kalimed, leaving Mrkovic to Monte-
negro, and reaching the Adriatic at V. Krucl.
On the north-west the frontier will be formed by a line
passing from the coast between the villages of Sugana and
Zubci, and terminating at the extreme south-east point of
the existing frontier of Montenegro on the Vrsuta Planina.
Montenegro. Annexation of Antivari and its Sea-board.
Conditions : — Dulcigno ; Spizza ; Navigation of the
Boy ana ; Port of Antivari ; No Ships of War ; No
Flag of War ; Fortifications, Commerce, &c.
ARTICLE XXIX. Antivari and its sea-board are annexed
to Montenegro under the following conditions : —
The districts situated to the south of that territory, in
accordance with the delimitation above laid down, as far
as the Boyana, including Dulcigno, shall be restored to
Turkey.1
The Commune of Spida,2 as far as the southernmost point
of the territory indicated in the detailed description of
the frontiers, shall be incorporated with, Dalmatia.
Montenegro shall have full and complete freedom of
navigation on the Boyana. No fortifications shall be
constructed on the course of that river except such as may
be necessary for the local defence of the stronghold of
1 Dulcigno was annexed to Montenegro by the Convention of
Konia, November 25, 1880 ; Hertslet, vol. iv, No. 579.
* Spica (or Spizza) was annexed to the Austrian Kingdom of
Dalmatia on April 15,1 879 (see Austrian Law of this date, in Hertslet,
vol. iv, No. 544).
348 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
Scutari, and they shall not extend beyond a distance of
6 kilom. from that town.
Montenegro shall have neither ships of war nor flag of
war.
The port of Antivari and all the waters of Montenegro
shall remain closed to the ships of war of all nations.
The fortifications situated on Montenegrin territory
between the lake and the coast shall be razed, and none
shall be rebuilt within this zone.
The administration of the maritime and sanitary police,
both at Antivari and along the coast of Montenegro, shall
be carried out by Austria-Hungary by means of light
coast-guard boats.
Montenegro shall adopt the maritime code in force in
Dalmatia. On her side Austria-Hungary undertakes to
grant Consular protection to the Montenegrin merchant
flag.
Montenegro shall come to an understanding with Austria-
Hungary on the right to construct and keep up across the
new Montenegrin territory a road and a railway.
Absolute freedom of communication shall be guaranteed
on these roads.
Montenegro. Right of Non-resident Mussulmans and others
to hold Real Property.
ARTICLE XXX. Mussulmans or others possessing pro-
perty in the territories annexed to Montenegro, who may
wish to take up their residence outside the Principality,
can retain their real property either by farming it out, or
by having it administered by third parties.
Montenegro. Indemnity on Expropriation.
No one shall be liable to be expropriated otherwise than
by legal process for -the public welfare, and with a previous
indemnity.
Montenegro. Turco-Montenegrin Commission to settle mode
of Alienation.
A Turco-Montenegrin Commission shall be appointed to
settle, within a period of three years, all questions relative
to the mode of alienation, working, or use, on the account
of the Sublime Porte, of property belonging to the State
TREATY OF BERLIN, 1878 349
and religious foundations (Vakoufs), as well as of the
questions regarding the interests of private parties engaged
therein.
Montenegro. Appointment of Agents at Constantinople and
other Places.
ARTICLE XXXI. The Principality of Montenegro shall
come to a direct understanding with the Ottoman Porte
with regard to the establishment of Montenegrin agents at
Constantinople, and at certain places in the Ottoman
Empire where the necessity for them shall be admitted.
Montenegrins travelling in Turkey to be subject to Ottoman
Laws and Authorities.
Montenegrins travelling or residing in the Ottoman
Empire shall be subject to the Ottoman laws and authori-
ties, according to the general principles of international
law,. and the customs established with regard to Monte-
negrins.
Montenegrin Troops to evacuate Turkish Territory.
ARTICLE XXXII. The Montenegrin troops shall be
bound to evacuate within twenty days from the date of
the ratification of the present Treaty, or sooner if possible,
the territory that they occupy at present beyond the new
limits of the Principality.
Montenegrin Territories to be evacuated by Ottoman Troops.
The Ottoman Troops shall evacuate the territories ceded
to Montenegro within the same period of twenty days.
A supplementary period of fifteen days shall, however, be
granted to them, as well for evacuating the fortresses and
withdrawing the stores and material of war from them,
as for drawing up inventories of the implements and
articles which cannot be" immediately removed.
Montenegro. Payment of portion of Ottoman Public Debt.
ARTICLE XXXIII. As Montenegro is to bear a portion
of the Ottoman public debt for the new territories assigned
to her by the Treaty of Peace, the Representatives of the
Powers at Constantinople shall determine the amount of
the same in concert with the Sublime Porte on an equitable
basis.
350 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
Servia. Conditional recognition of Independence.
ARTICLE XXXIV. The High Contracting Parties recog-
nize the independence of the Principality of Servia, subject
to the conditions set forth in the following Article.
Servia. Civil and Political Rights. Exercise of Professions
and Industries by all, irrespective of Religious Creeds.
ARTICLE XXXV. In Servia the difference of religious
creeds and confessions shall not be alleged against any
person as a ground for exclusion or incapacity in matters
relating to the enjoyment of civil and political rights,
admission to public employments, functions, and honours,
or the exercise of the various professions and industries, in
any locality whatsoever.
Servia. Freedom of Religious Worship.
The freedom and outward exercise of all forms of worship
shall be assured to all persons belonging to Servia, as well
as to foreigners, and no hindrance shall be offered either
to the hierarchical organization of the different com-
munions, or to their relations with their spiritual chiefs.
Servia. Boundaries.
ARTICLE XXXVI. Servia receives the territories in-
cluded in the following delimitation : —
Boundary between Servia and Bosnia : Little Zwornik and
Sakhar.
The new frontier follows the existing line ascending the
mid-channel of the Drina from its confluence with the Save,
leaving Mali Zwornik and Sakhar to the Principality, and
continues to follow the former boundary of Servia as far
as the Kopaonik, leaving it at the summit of the Kanilug.
From that point it follows at first the western boundary
of the Sandjak of Nisch by the southern spur of the Kopaonik,
by the crests of the Marica and Mrdar Planina, which form
the watershed between the basins of the Ibar and Sitnica
on one side, and that of the Toplica on the other, leaving
Piepolac to Turkey.
TREATY OF BERLIN, 1878 351
Boundary between Servia and Turkey (Macedonia).
It then turns to the south by the watershed between
the Brvenica and the Medvedja, leaving the whole of the
basin of the Medvedja to Servia ; follows the crests of
the Goljak Planina (which forms the watershed between
the Kriva-Rjeka on one side, and the Poljanica, Veternica,
and Morawa on the other), as far as the summit of the
Poljanica. It then follows the spur of the Karpina Planina
as far as the confluence of the Koinska and the Morawa,
crosses this river, and ascends by the watershed between
the Koinska brook and the stream which falls into the
Morawa near Neradovce, to reach the Sv. Ilija Planina
above Trgoviste. Thence it follows the crest of the Sv.
Ilija as far as Mount Kljuc, and passing by the points
marked 1516 and 1547 on the map, and by the Babina
Gora, it reaches Mount Crni-Vrh.
Boundary between Servia and Bulgaria.
From Mount Crni-Vrh the new delimitation coincides
with that of Bulgaria, that is to say : —
The line of frontier follows the watershed between the
Struma and the Morawa by the summits of StreSer, Vilogolo,
and MeSid Planina, rejoins by the Gacina, Crna Trava,
Darkovska, and Drainica Plan, then the DeScani Kladanec,
the watershed of the High Sukowa and of the Morawa,
goes straight to the Stol, and descends from it so as to cut
the road from Sofia to Pirot, 1,000 metres north-west of
the village of Segusa. It ascends in a straight line the
Vidli£ Planina, and thence Mount Radocina in the chain
of the Kod2a Balkan, leaving to Servia the village of
Doikinci, and to Bulgaria that of Senakos.
From the summit of Mount Radocina the frontier follows
towards the north-west the crest of the Balkans by Ciprovec
Balkan and Stara Planina up to the former eastern frontier
(I'ancienne frontiere orientate) of the Principality of Servia,
near to the Kula Smiljova Cuka, and thence that former
frontier as far as the Danube, which it joins at Rakovitza.1
Servia. Commercial Intercourse with Foreign Countries.
ARTICLE XXXVII. Until the conclusion of fresh arrange-
ments no change shall be made in Servia in the actual
conditions of the commercial intercourse of the Principality
with foreign countries.
1 The names of places printed in italics in this Article could not
be identified by the Boundary Commissioners.
352 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
Servia. No Transit Duties to be levied.
No transit duties shall be levied on goods passing through
Servia.
Servia. Immunities and Privileges of Foreigners. Consular
Jurisdiction and Protection.
The immunities and privileges of foreign subjects, as
well as the rights of Consular jurisdiction and protection,
as at present existing, shall remain in full force so long as
they shall not have been modified by mutual consent
between the Principality and the Powers concerned.
Servia. Acceptance of Engagements of the Porte with regard
to Railways in the Principality (Balkan Railways).
ARTICLE XXXVIII. The Principality of Servia takes
the place, so far as it is concerned, of the Sublime Porte
in the engagements which the latter has contracted as
well towards Austria-Hungary as towards the Company
for the working of the Railways of Turkey in Europe, in
respect to the completion and connexion, as well as the
working of the Railways to be constructed on the territory
newly acquired by the Principality.
Servia. Conventions respecting Railways to be concluded with
Austria-Hungary, the Porte, and Bulgaria.
The Conventions necessary for settling these questions
shall be concluded, immediately after the signature of the
present Treaty, between Austria-Hungary, the Porte,
Servia, and, within the limits of its competency, the
Principality of Bulgaria.
Servia. Right of Non-resident Mussulman Proprietors and
others to hold Real Property.
ARTICLE XXXIX. Mussulmans possessing property in
the territories annexed to Servia, who may wish to reside
outside the Principality, may retain thMr real property,
either by farming it out or by having it administered by
third parties.
TREATY OF BERLIN, 1878 353
Servia. Appointment of a Turco-Servian Commission.
Religious Foundations, &c. (Vakoufs).
A Turco-Servian Commission shall be appointed to
settle, within a period of three years, all questions relative
to the mode of alienation, working, or use, on the account
of the Sublime Porte, of the property belonging to the
State and religious foundations (Vakoufs), as well as of
the questions regarding the interests of private persons
engaged therein.
Servians travelling or residing in Turkey.
ARTICLE XL. Until the conclusion of a Treaty between
Turkey and Servia, Servian subjects travelling or residing
in the Ottoman Empire shall be treated according to the
general principles of international law.
Servian Troops to evacuate Turkish Territory.
ARTICLE XLI. The Servian troops shall be bound to
evacuate within fifteen days from the exchange of the
ratifications of the present Treaty the territory not com-
prised within the new limits of the Principality.
Servia. Evacuation of Ceded Territories by Ottoman Troops.
The Ottoman troops shall evacuate the territories ceded
to Servia within the same term of fifteen days. A supple-
mentary term of an equal number of days shall, however,
be granted to them as well for evacuating the fortresses
and withdrawing the provisions and material of war as
for drawing up the inventory of the implements and objects
which cannot be removed at once.
Servia. Payment of portion of Ottoman Public Debt.
ARTICLE XLII. As Servia is to bear a portion of the
Ottoman Public Debt for the new territories assigned to
her by the present Treaty, the Representatives at Con-
stantinople shall fix the amount of it in concert with the
Sublime Porte on an equitable basis.
Roumania. Conditional recognition of Independence.
ARTICLE XLIII. The High Contracting Parties recogniai
the independence of Roumania, subject to the conditions
set forth in the two following Articles.
1903
A a
354 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES .
Roumania. Civil and Political Rights. Exercise of Pro-
fessions and Industries by all, irrespective of Religious
Creeds.
ARTICLE XLIV. In Roumania the difference of religious
creeds and confessions shall not be alleged against any
person as a ground for exclusion or incapacity in matters
relating to the enjoyment of civil and political rights,
admission to public employments, functions, and honours,
or the exercise of the various professions and industries in
any locality whatsoever.
Roumania. Freedom of Religious Worship.
The freedom and outward exercise of all forms of worship
shall be assured to all persons belonging to the Roumanian
State, as well as to foreigners, and no hindrance shall be
offered either to the hierarchical organization of the
different communions, or to their relations with their
spiritual chiefs.
Roumania. Equal Treatment to Foreigners.
The subjects and citizens of all the Powers, traders or
others, shall be treated in Roumania, without distinction
of creed, on a footing of perfect equality.
Roumania. Restoration to Russia of portion of Bessarabian
Territory, detached from Russia in 1856.
ARTICLE XLV. The Principality of Roumania restores
to His Majesty the Emperor of Russia that portion of the
Bessarabian territory detached from Russia by the Treaty
of Paris of 1856, bounded on the west by the mid-channel
of the Pruth, and on the south by the mid-channel of the
Kilia Branch and the Stary-Stamboul mouth.
Roumania. Acquisition of Islands forming Delta of the
Danube ; the Isle of Serpents ; the Sandjak of Toultcha ;
and a portion of Territory to the South of the Dobroutcha.
ARTICLE XLVI. The islands forming the Delta of the
Danube, as well as the Isle of Serpents, the Sandjak of
Toultcha, comprising the districts (cazas) of Kilia, Soulina,
Mahmoudie, Isaktcha, Toultcha, Matchin, Babadagh,
Hirsovo, Kustendje, Medjidie, are added to Roumania.
The Principality receives in addition the territory situated
TREATY OF BERLIN, 1878 355
to the south of the Dobroutcha as1 far as a line starting
from the east of Silistria and terminating on the Black
Sea, south of Mangalia.
Roumania. Frontier to be determined by European Commis-
sion of Bulgaria.
The frontier line shall be determined on the spot by
the European Commission appointed for the delimitation
of Bulgaria.
Roumania. Arbitration on Division of Waters and Fisheries.
ARTICLE XLVII. The question of the division of the
waters and the fisheries shall be submitted to the arbitra-
tion of the European Commission of the Danube.
Roumania. No Transit Duties to be levied.
ARTICLE XLVII I. No transit dues shall be levied in
Roumania on goods passing through the Principality.
Roumania. Conclusion of Consular Conventions with regard
to Protection. Maintenance of existing Rights.
ARTICLE XLIX. Roumania shall have power to make
Conventions to determine the privileges and attributes of
Consuls in regard to protection within the Principality.
Existing rights shall remain in force so long as they shall
not have been modified by the mutual consent of the
Principality and the parties concerned.
Roumania. Rights of respective Subjects travelling or residing
in Turkey and in Roumania.
ARTICLE L. Until the conclusion of a Treaty between
Turkey and Roumania, fixing the privileges and attributes
of Consuls, Roumanian subjects travelling or residing in
the Ottoman Empire, and Ottoman subjects travelling or
residing in Roumania, shall enjoy the rights guaranteed to
the subjects of other European Powers.
Roumania. Liability for Public Works and Enterprises in
Ceded Territory.
ARTICLE LI. With regard to public works and other
enterprises of a like nature, Roumania shall be substituted
for the Sublime Porte as regards its rights and obligations
throughout the ceded territory.
Aa 2
356 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
Danube. Fortresses and Fortifications to be razed. Vessels
of War not to navigate the River below the Iron Gates.
Exceptions.
ARTICLE LII. In order to increase the guarantees which
assure the freedom of navigation on the Danube which is
recognized as of European interest, the High Contracting
Parties determine that all the fortresses and fortifications
existing on the course of the river from the Iron Gates to
its mouths shall be razed, and no new ones erected. No
vessel of war shall navigate the Danube below the Iron
Gates with the exception of vessels of light tonnage in the
service of the river police and Customs. The ' station-
naires ' of the Powers at the mouths of the Danube may,
however, ascend the river as far as Galatz.
Danube. European Commission to be maintained. Roumania
to be represented thereon. Extension to Galatz. Treaties,
&c., confirmed.
ARTICLE LIII. The European Commission of the Danube
on which Roumania shall be represented is maintained in
its functions, and shall exercise them henceforth as far as
Galatz in complete independence of the territorial authori-
ties. All the Treaties, arrangements, acts, and decisions
relating to its rights, privileges, prerogatives, and obliga-
tions are confirmed.
Danube. Prolongation of Powers of European Commission.
ARTICLE LIV. One year before the expiration of the
term assigned for the duration of the European Commis-
sion (24 April, 1883) the Powers shall come to an under-
standing as to the prolongation of its powers, or the
modifications which they may consider necessary to
introduce.
Danube. Regulations respecting Navigation, &c., from Iron
Gates to Galatz to be drawn up by European Commission
and Delegates of Riverain States.
ARTICLE LV. The regulations respecting navigation,
river police, and supervision from the Iron Gates to Galatz
shall be drawn up by an European Commission, assisted
by Delegates of the Riverain States, and placed in harmony
with those which have been or may be issued for the portion
of the river below Galatz.
TREATY OF BERLIN, 1878 357
Danube Commission. Lighthouse on Isle of Serpents.
ARTICLE LVI. The European Commission of the Danube
shall come to an arrangement with the proper authorities
to ensure the maintenance of the lighthouse on the Isle
of Serpents.
Danube. Execution of Works at Iron Gates and Cataracts
entrusted to Austria- Hungary.
ARTICLE LVII. The execution of the works which have
for their object the removal of the obstacles which the
Iron Gates and the Cataracts place in the way of naviga-
tion is entrusted to Austria-Hungary. The Riverain
States on this part of the river shall afford every facility
which may be required in the interest of the works.
Danube. Provisional Tax maintained in favour of Austria-
Hungary.
The provisions of the Vlth Article of the Treaty of
London of the I3th March 1871, relating to the right
of levying a provisional tax in order to cover the cost of
these works, are maintained in favour of Austria-Hungary.
Asia. Cessions by Turkey to Russia. Ardahan, Kars,
Batoum, &c. Frontier Line.
ARTICLE LVI II. The Sublime Porte cedes to the Russian
Empire in Asia the territories of Ardahan, Kars, and
Batoum, together with the latter port, as well as all the
territories comprised between the former Russo-Turkish
frontier and the following line : —
The new frontier starting from the Black Sea, and
coinciding with the line laid down by the Treaty of San
Stefano as far as a point to the north-west of Khorda, and
to the south of Artwin, continues in a straight line as far
as the River Tchoroukh, crosses this river and passes to
the east of Aschmichen, going in a straight line to the
south so as to rejoin the Russian frontier indicated in the
Treaty of San Stefano, at a point to the south of Nariman,
leaving the town of Olti to Russia. From the point indi-
cated near Nariman the frontier turns to the east, passes
by Tebrenec, which remains to Russia, and continues as
far as the Pennek Tschai.
It follows this river as far as Bardouz, then turns towards
358 . TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
the south, leaving Bardouz and Jonikioy to Russia. From
a point to the west of the village of Karaougan, the frontier
takes the direction of Medjingert, continues in a straight
line towards the summit of the Mountain Kassadagh, and
follows the line of the watershed between the affluents of
the Araxes on the north and those of the Mourad Sou on
the south, as far as the former frontier of Russia.
Asia. Batoum to be a Free Port.
ARTICLE LIX. His Majesty the Emperor of Russia
declares that it is his intention to constitute Batoum
a free port, essentially commercial.
Asia. Valley of Alaschkerd and Town of Bayazid restored
to Turkey.
ARTICLE LX. The valley of Alaschkerd and the town of
Bayazid, ceded to Russia by Article XIX of the Treaty
of San Stefano, are restored to Turkey.
Asia. Cession of Khotour by Turkey to Persia.
The Sublime Porte cedes to Persia the town and territory
of Khotour, as fixed by the mixed Anglo-Russian Com-
mission for the delimitation of the frontiers of Turkey and
of Persia.
Asia. Improvements and Reforms in favour of Armenians.
Protection against Circassians and Kurds. The Powers
to be kept periodically informed.
ARTICLE LXI. The Sublime Porte undertakes to carry
out, without further delay, the improvements and reforms
demanded by local requirements in the provinces inhabited
by the Armenians, and to guarantee their security against
the Circassians and Kurds.
It will periodically make known the steps taken to this
effect to the Powers, who will superintend their applica-
tion.
Religious Liberty.
ARTICLE LXII. The Sublime Porte having expressed
the intention to maintain the principle of religious liberty,
and give it the widest scope, the Contracting Parties take
note of this spontaneous declaration.
TREATY OF BERLIN, 1878 359
Religion. Equal Civil and Political Rights.
In no part of the Ottoman Empire shall difference of
religion be alleged against any person as a ground for
exclusion or incapacity as regards the discharge of civil
and political rights, admission to the public employments,
functions and honours, or the exercise of the various
professions and industries.
Religion. Evidence before Tribunals.
All persons shall be admitted, without distinction of
religion, to give evidence before the tribunals.
Religious Worship.
The freedom and outward exercise of all forms of worship
are assured to all, and no hindrance shall be offered either
to the hierarchical organization of the various communions
or to their relations with their spiritual chiefs.
Religion. Equal Rights to all Ecclesiastics, &c., travelling
in Turkey.
Ecclesiastics, pilgrims, and monks of all nationalities
travelling in Turkey in Europe, or in Turkey in Asia, shall
enjoy the same rights, advantages, and privileges.
Religion. Protection of Ecclesiastics, &c., by Diplomatic
and Consular Agents of the Powers.
The right of official protection by the Diplomatic and
Consular Agents of the Powers in Turkey is recognized
both as regards the above-mentioned persons and their
religious, charitable, and other establishments in the Holy
Places and elsewhere.
Religion. Rights of France and status quo in Holy Places.
The rights possessed by France are expressly reserved,
and it is well understood that no alterations can be made
in the status quo in the Holy Places.
Religion. Rights and Prerogatives of all Monks of Mount
Athos.
The monks of Mount Athos, of whatever country they
may be natives, shall be maintained in their former posses-
sions and advantages, and shall enjoy, without any excep-
tion, complete equality of rights and prerogatives.
360 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
Maintenance of Treaties of 30 March, 1856, and 13 March,
1871 (Dardanelles and Bosphorus, &c.).
ARTICLE LXIII. The Treaty of Paris of March 30, 1856,
as well as the Treaty of London of March 13, 1871, are
maintained in all such of their provisions as are not abro-
gated or modified by the preceding stipulations.
Ratifications.
ARTICLE LXIV. The present Treaty shall be ratified,
and the Ratifications exchanged at Berlin within three
weeks, or sooner if possible.
In faith whereof the respective Plenipotentiaries have
signed it, and affixed to it the seal of their arms.
Done at Berlin, the thirteenth day of the month of July,
one thousand eight hundred and seventy-eight.
(L.S.) BEACONSFIELD.
(L.S.) SALISBURY.
(L.S.) ODO RUSSELL.
(L.S.) v. BISMARCK.
(L.S.) BULOW.
(L.S.) HOHENLOHE.
(L.S.) ANDRASSY.
(L.S.) KAROLYI.
(L.S.) HAYMERLE.
(L.S.) WADDINGTON.
(L.S.) SAINT-VALLIER.
(L.S.) H. DESPREZ.
(L.S.) L. CORTI.
(L.S.) LAUNAY.
(L.S.) GORTCHAKOW.
(L.S.) SCHOUVALOFF.
(L.S.) P. D'OUBRIL.
(L.S.) AL. CARATHfiODORY.
(L.S.) MEHEMED ALL
(L.S.) SADOULLAH.
TREATY OF LONDON, 1913 361
TREATY OF PEACE BETWEEN GREECE, BULGARIA, MONTE-
NEGRO, SERBIA ON THE ONE PART, AND TURKEY ON
THE OTHER PART. London, May 17/30, IQI3.1
ARTICLE I. There will be from the date of the exchange
of the ratifications of the present treaty, peace and friend-
ship between His Majesty the Emperor of the Ottomans
on the one part, and their Majesties the Allied Sovereigns
on the other part, as well as between their heirs and
successors, their States and respective subjects in per-
petuity.
ARTICLE II. His Majesty the Emperor of the Ottomans
cedes to their Majesties the Allied Sovereigns all the
territories of his Empire on the continent of Europe to the
west of a line drawn from Enos on the Aegean Sea to Midia
on the Black Sea with the exception of Albania. The exact
line of the frontier from Enos to Midia will be determined
by an international commission.
ARTICLE III. His Majesty the Emperor of the Ottomans
and their Majesties the Allied Sovereigns declare that they
remit to His Majesty the Emperor of Germany, His Majesty
the Emperor of Austria, the President of the French
Republic, His Majesty the King of Great Britain and
Ireland, and His Majesty the Emperor of All the Russias,
the care of settling the delimitation of the frontiers of
Albania and all other questions concerning Albania.
ARTICLE IV. His Majesty the Emperor of the Ottomans
declares that he cedes to their Majesties the Allied Sove-
reigns the Isle of Crete, and that he renounces in their
favour all the rights of sovereignty and other rights which
he possessed on that Isle.
ARTICLE V. His Majesty the Emperor of the Ottomans
and their Majesties the Allied Sovereigns declare that they
confide to His Majesty the -Emperor of Germany, His
Majesty the Emperor of Austria, the President of the
French Republic, His Majesty the King of Great Britain
and Ireland, His Majesty the King of Italy, and His
Majesty the Emperor of All the Russias the task of decid-
ing the destiny of all the Ottoman isles of the Aegean Sea
excepting Crete, and of the Peninsula of Mount Athos.
ARTICLE VI. His Majesty the Emperor of the Ottomans
and their Majesties the Allied Sovereigns declare that they
1 In French. Nouveau Recueil, 3me s6rie. t. viii.
362 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
remit the task of regulating questions of a financial kind
resulting from the state of war just finished and from the
territorial cession above mentioned, to the International
Commission convened at Paris, to which they have deputed
their representatives.
TREATY OF PEACE BETWEEN ROUMANIA, GREECE, MONTE-
NEGRO, SERBIA, AND BULGARIA. Bucharest, July 28/
August 10,
ARTICLE I. There will be from the date of the day of
the exchange of the ratifications of the present treaty,
peace and friendship between His Majesty the King of
Roumania, His Majesty the King of the Hellenes, His
Majesty the King of Montenegro, His Majesty the King
of Serbia, His Majesty the King of the Bulgarians, as
well as between their heirs and successors, their States
and respective subjects.
ARTICLE II. Between the Kingdom of Bulgaria and the
Kingdom of Roumania, the old frontier between the Danube
and the Black Sea is, conformably with the proces-verbal
drawn up by the respective military delegates and annexed
to the Protocol No. 5 of the 22nd of July (August 4th),
1913, of the Conference of Bucharest, rectified in the follow-
ing manner :
The new frontier will start from the Danube above
Turtukaia and terminate at the Black Sea to the South
of Ekrene.
Between these two extreme points the line of the frontier
will follow the line indicated on the maps i/ioo.ooo and
I, 200.000 of the Roumanian General Staff, and according
to the description annexed to the present article.2
It is formally understood that Bulgaria will dismantle
within two years at latest the existing fortifications, and
will construct no others at Roustchouk, at Schoumla, in
the country between, and in a zone of twenty kilometres
round Baltchik.
A mixed commission, composed of representatives of
the two High Contracting Parties, in equal numbers of
1 In French. Nouveau Recueil, 3me serie, t. viii.
* The Annexes to the Treaty, along with the official text of the
Treaty itself, will be found in ' Le Traite de Paix de Bucarest du
28 Juillet (10 Aout) 1913' — Bucarest, Imprimerie de l'£tat, 1913.
TREATY OF BUCHAREST, 1913 363
both sides, will be charged, in the fortnight following the
signature of the present Treaty, to execute on the land
a tracing of the new frontier, conformably to the preceding
stipulations. This commission will preside at the partition
of the funds and capitals which have belonged till now in
common to districts, communes, or communities of inhabi-
tants separated by the new frontier. In case of disagree-
ment over the tracing and the measures for executing it,
the two High Contracting Parties engage to address them-
selves to a third friendly Government to beg it to appoint
an arbiter whose decision on the points in dispute shall be
considered as final.
ARTICLE III. Between the Kingdom of Bulgaria and
the Kingdom of Serbia, the frontier will follow conform-
ably with the proces-verbal drawn up by the respective
military delegates and annexed to the Protocol No. 9 of
the 25th of July (August 7th), 1913, of the Conference
of Bucharest, the following line :
The frontier line will start from the old frontier from
the summit of Patarica, will follow the old Turco-Bulgarian
frontier and the line of the watershed between the Vardar
and the Strouma, with the exception of the upper valley
of the Stroumitza, which will remain on Serbian territory ;
it will terminate at the Belasica Mountain, where it will
bend back to the Graeco-Bulgarian frontier. A detailed
description of this frontier and its indication on the map
1/200.000 of the Austrian General Staff are annexed to the
present article.
A mixed commission, composed of representatives of
the two High Contracting Parties, in equal number on
both sides, will be charged, in the fortnight following the
signature of the present Treaty, with executing on the land
a tracing of the new frontier, conformably to the preceding
stipulations. This commission will preside at the partition
of the funds and capitals which have belonged till now in
common to districts, communes, or communities of inhabi-
tants separated by the new frontier. In case of disagree-
ment over the tracing and the measures for executing it,
the two High Contracting Parties engage to address them-
selves to a third friendly Government to beg it to appoint
an arbiter whose decision on the points in dispute shall be
considered as final.
ARTICLE IV. The questions relative to the old Serbo-
364 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
Bulgarian frontier will be regulated according to the
understanding agreed upon by the two High Contracting
Parties stated in the Protocol annexed to the present
article.
ARTICLE V. Between the Kingdom of Greece and the
Kingdom of Bulgaria the frontier will follow conformably
with the proces-verbal drawn up by the respective military
Delegates and annexed to the Protocol No. 9 of the 25th
of July (August 7th), 1913, of the Conference of Bucharest,
the following line :
The frontier line shall start from the new Serbo-Bulgarian
frontier on the summit of Belagica planina, to terminate
at the mouth of the Mesta on the Aegean Sea.
Between these two extreme points, the frontier line will
follow the tracing indicated on the map 1/200.000 of the
Austrian General Staff and according to the description
annexed to the present article.
A mixed commission, composed of representatives of
the two High Contracting Parties, in equal numbers of
both sides, will be charged, in the fortnight following the
signature of the present Treaty, to execute on the land
a tracing of the new frontier, conformably to the preceding
stipulations. This commission will preside at the partition
of the funds and capitals which have belonged till now in
common to districts, communes, or communities of inhabi-
tants separated by the new frontier. In case of disagree-
ment over the tracing and the measures for executing it,
the two High Contracting Parties engage to address them-
selves to a third friendly Government to beg it to appoint
an arbiter whose decision on the points in dispute shall
be considered as final.
It is formally understood that Bulgaria desists from
henceforth, from every pretension to the Isle of Crete.
ARTICLE VI. The General Quarters of the respective
armies shall be immediately informed of the signature of
the present Treaty. The Bulgarian Government engages
to reduce its army, on the day after this notification, to
a peace footing. It will dispatch its troops to their garrisons,
whither they will proceed, with the smallest delay, the
various reserves being sent back to their homes.
Troops whose place of garrison is situated within the
zone of occupation of the army of one of the High Contract-
ing Powers, will be directed to another point of the old
TREATY OF BUCHAREST, 1913 365
Bulgarian territory, and will only be able to go to their
usual place of garrison after the evacuation of the zone of
occupation above mentioned.
ARTICLE VII. The evacuation of the Bulgarian territory,
both old and new, will commence immediately after the
demobilization of the Bulgarian army, and will be completed
at the latest within the fortnight.
During this delay, for the Roumanian army, the zone of
demarcation will be indicated by the line Sistov-Lovcea-
Turski-Iz vor - Glozene - Zlatitza - Mirko vo - Araba -Konak -
Orchania-Mezdra-Vratza-Berkovitza-Lom-Danube.
ARTICLE VIII. During the occupation of the Bulgarian
territories, the different armies will keep the right of requisi-
tion, on condition of payment in coin.
They will have the free use of the railway lines for the
transport of troops and supplies of every kind, without
there being any ground for indemnity to the local authority.
The sick and wounded shall be under the safeguard of
the said armies.
ARTICLE IX. As soon as possible after the exchange of
the ratifications of the present Treaty, all the prisoners
of war shall be reciprocally given back.
The Governments of the High Contracting Parties shall
each appoint special Commissioners charged with receiving
the prisoners.
All the prisoners in the hands of one of the Governments
shall be delivered to the commissioner of the Government
to which they belong or to his representative duly authorized,
at the place which shall be fixed by the interested parties.
The Governments of the High Contracting Parties shall
respectively present one to the other, and as soon as possible
after the release of all the prisoners, a statement of the
direct expenses incurred by it for the care and entertain-
ment of the prisoners, from the date of their capture or
surrender until that of their death or release. Computation
shall be made between the sums due by Bulgaria to one of
the other High Contracting Parties and those due by these
to Bulgaria, and the difference shall be paid to the creditor
Government as soon as possible after the exchange of the
statements of expenses above mentioned.
ARTICLE X. The present Treaty shall be ratified, and
the ratifications of it shall be exchanged at Bucharest
within the space of fifteen days or as soon as can be done.
366 TURKEY, RUSSIA, AND BALKAN STATES
In faith of which, the respective Plenipotentiaries have
signed it and have affixed their seals to it.
Made at Bucarest the 28th day of the month of July
(loth day of the month of August) of the year 1913.
(Signed)
For Roumanian
(L.S.) T. MAIORESCO. (L.S.)
AL. MARGHILOMAN.
TAKE JONESCO.
C. G. DISSESCO.
GENERAL AIDE-DE-
CAMP COANDA.
COLONEL C. CHRIS-
TESCO.
For Greece :
(L.S.) E. K. VENISELOS. (L.S.)
D. PANAS.
N. POLITIS.
CAPITAINE A. EXADAC-
TYLOS.
CAPITAINE C. PALI.
For Serbia :
NIK. P. PACHITCH.
M. G. RISTITCH.
M. SPALAIKOVITCH.
COLONEL K. SMILIA-
NITCH.
LT.-COLONEL D.
KALAFATOVITCH.
For Bulgaria :
D. TONTCHEFF.
GENERAL FITCHEFF.
DR. S. IVANTCHOFF.
S. RADEFF.
Lx. -COLONEL STAN-
CIOFF.
For Montenegro :
(L.S.) GENERAL SERDAR I. VOUKOTITCH.
Y. MATANOVITCH.
CHAPTER XII
THE TRIPLE ALLIANCE
Tension between Germany and France, after 1871 — Tension between
Germany and Russia after 1878 — Austro-German Alliance.
1879 — Publication, 1888 — Accession of Italy — Accession of
Ron mania — The question of casus foederis, 1914 — Form of
the Italian accessions to Triple Alliance — Evidence from Turco-
Italian War, 1911-12 — The Austro-Serbian War, 1914.
Texts i The Treaty of Vienna (1879) — The Triple Alliance (1903).
AFTER the Franco-German War the centre of gravity
in continental politics was transferred from Paris to Berlin.
Peace and alliances were the order of the day in the place
of rumours of, and preparations for, war. It is true that
at one period in 1875 Germany, disturbed, it was said, by
the marvellous recuperative power manifested by France
ever since the conclusion of the Peace of Frankfort, dis-
played a certain liveliness which gave rise to some anxiety
in Europe, but the pacifying influence exercised by Great
Britain and Russia on that occasion smoothed matters
over, and the apprehended difficulties were removed.
No sooner was the German Emperor established on his
imperial throne than the Emperor of Austria visited him
at Berlin in order to draw closer the bonds of friendship
which united the two crowns. In the same manner the
Tsar of Russia manifested that he was still animated with
the traditions of the Holy Alliance. Later on the King
of Italy visited Berlin, and many other European States
sought the friendship of the new Empire. In 1872 the
Emperors of Austria and Russia met the Kaiser at Berlin,
where the arrangement known as the Dreikaiserbund was
come to, concerning which Prince Gorchakoff, who accom-
368 THE TRIPLE ALLIANCE
panied his master, remarked that the best thing about the
meeting was that nothing had been reduced to writing.
The Bulgarian troubles in 1876, the ensuing war between
Russia and Turkey, and the subsequent Congress of the
Powers in 1878 at Berlin have already been treated of.
It only remains to surmise that the military successes of
Russia in the war and her acquisition of territory in Asia
Minor and on the Danube, as well as her increasing
influence in the Balkans, contributed to render the Drei-
kaiserbund less satisfying in the view of the other two
parties to it ; and that Russia, robbed by the Treaty
of Berlin of some of the spoils of victory, regarded
Germany, as part author of the treaty, with eyes less
friendly than of yore. It seems certain that the mutual
confidence of Russia and Germany received a shock, and
rumours of strained relations filled the air. But the
meeting of the Tsar and the Kaiser at Alexandrovo in
1879 seemed to have removed the tension : ' Peace is
again secured ! ' exclaimed the Kaiser. Nevertheless,
Bismarck, shortly afterwards, visited Vienna, whence in
due course he returned to Berlin with a Treaty of Defensive
Alliance, dated October 7, 1879, concluded between Austria
and Germany, and mainly directed against Russia.
According to the stipulation in Article III, the Treaty,
' in conformity with its peaceful character and to avoid
any misinterpretation ', v/as kept secret. This secrecy
was maintained until the year 1888, when, for the same
reasons, the two Governments determined to make it
public.
It was published in the Berlin Official Gazette of Feb-
ruary 3, 1888, with the following introductory note 1 :
1 The Governments of Germany and of the Austro-
Hungarian Monarchy have determined upon the publica-
tion of the Treaty concluded between them on the 7th
October 1879, in order to put an end to* doubts which
1 State Papers, vol. Ixxiii, p. 270.
ACCESSION OF ITALY 369
have been entertained in various quarters of its purely
defensive character, and have been turned to account for
various ends. The two allied Governments are guided in
their policy by the endeavour to maintain peace and to
guard, as far as possible, against- its disturbance ; they
are convinced that by making the contents of their Treaty
of Alliance generally known they will exclude all possibility
of doubt on this point, and have therefore resolved to
publish it.'
Italy acceded to this treaty in 1882, although this fact
is not alluded to in the above communication ; and this
tripartite arrangement is generally known as the Triple
Alliance. Roumania also joined the group of the Triple
Alliance in 1883, and repudiated it on August 30, I9I6.1
On the outbreak of the European War in 1914, in reply
to the German Government's intimation of the fact that
ultimatums had been presented to France and Russia, and
to the question, what were the intentions of Italy, the
Italian Government replied : ' The war undertaken by
Austria and the consequences which may result, had, in
the words of the German Ambassador himself, an aggres-
sive object. Both were therefore in conflict with the
purely defensive character of the Triple Alliance, and in
such circumstances Italy would remain neutral.' 2 In fact
the war was not a defensive but an aggressive war, and
for this reason the casus foederis under the terms of the
Triple Alliance did not arise. The purely defensive char-
acter of the compact seems therefore to be established.
What particular form was assumed by the Italian
Accession in May 1882 to the Austro-German Alliance
is doubtful. No substantive document in this connexion
appears to have been made public. It may have been
effected by means of a diplomatic note or unilateral
1 Mowat, Select Treaties, pp. 124-5, 129-32.
• Parliamentary Paper, 'Miscellaneous No. 6 (1914)', C. 7467,
P- 75-
W<» B b
370 THE TRIPLE ALLIANCE
declaration, which perhaps merely announced the fact of
the accession without reciting the terms of the compact.
On a subsequent renewal of the Alliance, however, it is in
evidence that in 1903 Italy signed a treaty with Austria
(to which Germany was also a party), of which the stipu-
lations in some respects differed from and were in excess
of those of the original dual Alliance of 1879. Portions of
this treaty were published by the Austrian Government
in 1915, and reproduced in The Times newspaper of June I
of that year.1
The articles (or clauses as they were there called) so
published were three in number, namely III, IV, and VII,
and contained the following stipulations : Article III
provided that if one or two of the Contracting Parties were
attacked by a Power or Powers not signatory of the treaty,
all the Contracting Parties would have to join in the war.
Article IV provided for benevolent neutrality of the
Contracting Parties, in case one of their members, not
being first attacked, should have to declare war on another
Power.
Article VII was extremely important. It had special
reference to the Balkans, and proclaimed the interest of
Austria and Italy in maintaining the territorial status quo
there. It stipulated that the two Powers should give
each other full information concerning their own, or any
other Power's intentions in the Balkans. Further, it was
agreed that if either Italy or Austria should be obliged to
change the status quo in the Balkans, the Adriatic or the
Aegean, such change should be made by agreement with
the other Power and on condition of compensation to it.
What induced Italy to join the Austro-German Alliance
in its original form as published by the German Govern-
ment, may be a matter of conjecture. Count Benedetti,3
1 SeeMovvat, Select Treaties and Documents, 1916 edition, pp. 124
and 128.
1 Studies in Diplomacy. Published by Heinemann, London, 1896.
TURCO-ITALIAN WAR 371
a former French Ambassador at Berlin, was of opinion that
the accession of Italy was the work of Bismarck, who
impressed upon Italy that a newly constituted monarchy
stood in need of powerful foreign alliances, his object
being to separate Italy from France. However this may
be, a more direct incentive may be discovered in the terms
of the more recent renewal of the Alliance as quoted above
(Article VII), and its references to the satisfaction of the
interests and rightful claims of the parties thereto in the
event of any future modification of the status quo in the
Balkans. Here Italy no doubt had an eye to national
aspirations as regards a possible extension of territory in
the direction of Trieste. Conditions analogous to the
stipulations of Article VII may or may not have formed
a part of the original accession of Italy to the Alliance, but
as to this there appears to be no official publication avail-
able.
This Article VII has been appealed to both by Austria
and by Italy in connexion with the affairs of South-Eastern
Europe.
In 1911, during the Turco-Italian War arising out of
Italian action in Tripoli (the Libyan War), the Austrian
Government declared that the action of Italy on the Otto-
man Coast of Turkey in Europe or on the Islands of the
Aegean Sea could not be permitted either by Austria or
by Germany because it would be opposed to the Treaty of
Alliance, it being held that bombardment of ports such as
Salonika, Ka valla, &c., was opposed to the provisions of
Article VII. In April 1912 the Austrian Government again
protested because the Italian squadron before the Dar-
danelles had damaged the forts in replying to the shots that
were fired upon it from these forts.1 The Italian Govern-
ment denied that their action had threatened the status quo,
and maintained that the attitude of Austria, by encouraging
1 Italian Green Book, Diplomatic Documents, 1915, English trans-
lation. Hodder & Stoughton, London.
B b a
372 THE TRIPLE ALLIANCE
and indirectly protecting Turkey, was a source of serious
loss to Italy.
On the other hand, on the outbreak of the great European
War in 1914, when Austrian troops invaded and occupied
portions of Serbian territory, Italy in her turn protested
against this disturbance of the status quo in the Balkans
without a previous agreement being made as required by
the terms of Article VII. A long correspondence ensued ;
territorial compensation was claimed by Italy ; Austria
proposed compensation at the expense of a third party
(Albania) ; Italy refused, demanding Austrian territory.
In the end Austria promised an insufficient cession in the
Trentino, to be delayed until the end of the war. This
idea Italy declined to entertain, and finally, in May 1915,
withdrew from the Triple Alliance, and declared war
against Austria on the 23rd of the same month. In August
1916 she also declared war against Germany.
TREATY OF ALLIANCE BETWEEN GERMANY AND AUSTRIA.
Vienna, October 7, I879.1
CONSIDERING that Their Majesties the German Emperor,
King of Prussia, and the Emperor of Austria, King of
Hungary, must esteem it as their incontestable duty as
sovereigns to take care in all circumstances for the security
of their empires and for the tranquillity of their peoples ;
Considering that the two monarchs as in the previously
existing confederation will be in a position, by a firm
alliance of the two empires, to fulfil this duty more easily
and more efficaciously ;
Considering, finally, that an intimate accord between
Germany and Austria-Hungary can menace nobody, but
is, on the contrary, qualified to consolidate the peace of
Europe created by the stipulations of the Treaty of Berlin ;
Their Majesties the German Emperor and the Emperor
of Austria, King of Hungary, promising one another never
to give any aggressive tendency in any direction to their
1 In German. Nonveau Recueil, 2«>e serie, tome xv ; State Papers,
»'ol. Ixxiii, p. 270.
TREATY OF VIENNA, 1879 373
purely defensive agreement, have resolved to conclude an
alliance of peace and reciprocal protection.
With tnis object Their Majesties have named as their
plenipotentiaries ;
For His Majesty the German Emperor his Ambassador
and Plenipotentiary Extraordinary, Lieutenant-General
Prince Henry VII of Reuss, &c., &c.
For His Majesty the Emperor of Austria, King of
Hungary, his Privy Counsellor the Minister of the Imperial
Household and of Foreign Affairs, Field-Marshal-Lieutenant
Julius, Count Andrassy, &c.
Who have come together to-day, at Vienna, and after
having exchanged their powers duly recognized as good
and sufficient, have concluded what follows :
ARTICLE I. If, contrary to expectation and against the
sincere desire of both the High Contracting Parties, one
of the two Empires shall be attacked on the part of Russia,
the High Contracting Parties are bound to assist each
other with the whole of the military power of their Empire,
and consequently only to conclude peace conjointly and
by agreement.
ARTICLE II. Should one of the High Contracting Parties
be attacked by another Power, the other High Contracting
Party hereby engages not only not to assist the aggressor
against his High Ally, but at the least to observe a bene-
volent neutral attitude with regard to the High Contracting
Party.
If, however, in such a case the attacking Power should
be supported on the part of Russia, whether by way of
active co-operation, or by military measures which menace
the attacked Power, then the obligation of reciprocal
assistance with full military power, which is stipulated in
the first article of this Treaty, will in this case enter imme-
diately into effect, and the conduct of war of both the
High Contracting Parties shall be then also in common
until the joint conclusion of Peace.
ARTICLE III. This Treaty, in conformity with its pacific
character and to prevent any misconstruction, shall be
kept secret by both High Contracting Parties, and it will
be communicated to a Third Power only with the consent
of both Parties, and strictly according to a special agree-
ment.
Both High Contracting Parties, in view of the senti-
374 THE TRIPLE ALLIANCE
ments expressed by the Emperor Alexander at the interview
at Alexandrowo,1 hope that the preparations .of Russia
will not prove in reality to be a menace to them, and for
this reason they have for the present no occasion for
a communication. But if, contrary to expectation, this
hope should prove a vain one, the two High Contracting
Parties will recognize it as a loyal obligation, to inform
the Emperor Alexander at least confidentially that they
must consider an attack against one of them as directed
against both.
In witness whereof the Plenipotentiaries have signed
this treaty with their own hand, and have affixed their
seals.
Done at Vienna, the 7th October, 1879.
H. VII. P. REUSS. ANDRASSY.
(L. S.) (L. S.)
THE TRIPLE ALLIANCE. May 1882.
THE PUBLISHED SECTIONS OF THE TRIPLE ALLIANCE
TREATY BETWEEN AUSTRIA AND ITALY (as renewed,
May 20, 1903) ,2
CLAUSE III. In case one or two of the High Contracting
Parties, without direct provocation on their part, should
be attacked by one or more Great Powers not signatory
of the present Treaty and should become involved in a war
with them, the casus foederis would arise simultaneously
for all the High Contracting Parties.
CLAUSE IV. In case a Great Power not signatory of the
present Treaty should threaten the State security of one
of the High Contracting Parties, and in case the threatened
party should thereby be compelled to declare war against
that Great Power, the two other contracting parties engage
themselves to maintain benevolent neutrality towards their
Ally. Each of them reserves its right, in this case, to
1 September 3, 1879, in Pqsen. William I of Germany met Alex-
ander II of Russia there, to try and allay the friction which existed
between the two countries as a, consequence of the Treaty of
Berlin. The interview was cordial on both sides, but Bismarck was
very dissatisfied with it. See P. Matter, Bismarck (1908), vol. iii,
pp. 452-6 ; Busch, Bismarck (trans. 1898), vol. iii, pp. 257-66.
* The Times, June i, 1915.
THE TRIPLE ALLIANCE, 1903 375
take part in the war if it thinks fit in order to make common
cause with its Ally.
CLAUSE VII. Austria-Hungary and Italy, who have
solely in view the maintenance, as far as possible, of the
territorial status quo in the East, engage themselves to use
their influence to prevent all territorial changes which
might be disadvantageous to the one or the other of the
Powers signatory of the present Treaty. To this end
they will give reciprocally all information calculated to
enlighten each other concerning their own intentions and
those of other Powers. Should, however, the case arise
that, in the course of events, the maintenance of the status
quo in the territory of the Balkans or of the Ottoman
coasts and islands in the Adriatic or the Aegean Seas
becomes impossible, and that, either in consequence of
the action of a third Power or for any other reason, Austria-
Hungary or Italy should be obliged to change the status
quo on their part by a temporary or permanent occupa-
tion, such occupation would only take place after previous
agreement between the two Powers, which would have to
be based upon the principle of a reciprocal compensation
for all territorial or other advantages that either of them
might acquire over and above the existing status quo, and
would have to satisfy the interests and rightful claims of
both parties.
APPENDIX
PRELIMINARY TREATY OF PEACE BETWEEN RUSSIA AND
TURKEY. SIGNED AT SAN STEFANO, February ig/
March 3, 1878.
His Majesty the Emperor of Russia and His Majesty the
Emperor of the Ottomans, inspired with the wish of restor-
ing and securing the blessings of peace to their countries
and people, as well as of preventing any fresh complication
which might imperil the same, have named as their Pleni-
potentiaries, with a view to draw up, conclude, and sign the
Preliminaries of Peace :
His Majesty the Emperor of Russia on the one side, the
Count Nicolas Ignatiew, &c., and Sieur Alexander Nelidow,
&c.
And His Majesty the Emperor of the Ottomans on the
other side, Safvet Pasha, &c., and Sadoullah Bey, &c.
Who, after having exchanged their full powers, which
were found to be in good and proper form, have agreed to
the following Articles :
ARTICLE I. In order to put an end to the perpetual con-
flicts between Turkey and Montenegro, the frontier which
separates the two countries will be rectified, conformably
to the map hereto annexed, subject to the reserve herein-
after mentioned, in the following manner :
From the mountain of Dobrostitza the frontier will follow
the line indicated by the Conference of Constantinople as far
as Korito by Bilek. Thence the new frontier will run to
Gatzko (Metochia-Gatzko will belong to Montenegro), and
towards the confluence of the Piva and the Tara, ascending
towards the north by the Drina as far as its confluence with
the Lim. The eastern frontier of the Principality will follow
this last river as far as Prijepolje, and will proceed by Roshaj
to Sukha-Planina (leaving Bihor and Roshaj to Montenegro).
Taking in Bugovo, Plava, and Gusinje, the frontier line will
follow the chain of mountains by Shlieb, Paklen, and along
the northern frontier of Albania by the crests of the moun-
tains Koprivnik, Babavik, Bor-vik, to the highest peak of
378 APPENDIX
Prokleti. From that point the frontier will proceed by the
summit of Biskaschik, and will run in a straight line to
the Lake of Tjiceni-hoti. Dividing Tjiceni-hoti and Tjiceni-
kastrati, it will cross the Lake of Scutari to the Boyana, the
thalweg of which it will follow as far as the sea. Nichsich,
Gatzko, Spouje, Podgoritza, Jabliak, and Antivari will
remain te Montenegro.
A European Commission, on which the Sublime Porte
and the Government of Montenegro shall be represented,
will be charged with fixing the definite limits of the Princi-
pality, making on the spot such modifications in the general
tracing as it may think necessary and equitable, from the
point of view of the respective interests and tranquillity of
the two countries, to which it will accord in this respect the
equivalents deemed necessary.
The navigation of the Boyana having always given rise to
disputes between the Sublime Porte and Montenegro, will
be the subject of a special regulation, which will be prepared
by the same European Commission.
ARTICLE II. The Sublime Porte recognizes definitively
the independence of the Principality of Montenegro.
An understanding between the Imperial Government
of Russia, the Ottoman Government, and the Principality of
Montenegro will determine subsequently the character and
form of the relations between the Sublime Porte and the
Principality as regards particularly the establishment of
Montenegrin Agents at Constantinople, and in certain
localities of the Ottoman Empire, where the necessity for
such agents shall be recognized, the extradition of fugitive
criminals on the one territory or the other, and the subjec-
tion of Montenegrins travelling or sojourning in the Ottoman
Empire to the Ottoman laws and authorities, according to
the principles of international law and the established usages
concerning the Montenegrins.
A Convention will be concluded between the Sublime
Porte and Montenegro to regulate the questions connected
with the relations between the inhabitants of the confines
of the two countries and with the military works on the
same confines. The points upon which an understanding
cannot be established will be settled by the arbitration of
Russia and Austria-Hungary.
Henceforward, if there is any discussion or conflict, except
as regards new territorial demands, Turkey and Montenegro
APPENDIX 379
will leave the settlement of their differences to Russia and
Austria-Hungary, who will arbitrate in common.
The troops of Montenegro will be bound to evacuate the
territory not comprised within the limits indicated above
within ten days from the signature of the Preliminaries of
Peace.
ARTICLE III. Servia is recognized as independent. Its
frontier, marked on the annexed map, will follow the thal-
weg of the Drina, leaving Little Zwornik and Zakar to the
Principality, and following the old limit as far as the sources
of the stream Dezevo, near Stoilac. Thence the new line
will follow the course of that stream as far as the River
Raska, and then the course of the latter as far as Novi-
Bazar.
From Novi-Bazar, ascending the stream which passes
near the villages of Mekinje and Irgoviste as far as its source,
the frontier line will run by Bosur Planina, in the valley of
the Ibar, and will then descend the stream which falls into
this river near the village of Ribanic.
The line will then follow the course of the Rivers Ibar,
Sitnitza and Lab, and of the brook Batintze to its source
(upon the Grapachnitza Planina). Thence the frontier will
follow the heights which separate the waters of the Kriva
and the Veternitza, and will meet the latter river by the
shortest route at the mouth of the stream Miovatzka, which
it will ascend, crossing the Miovatzka Planina and re-
descending towards the Morava, near the village of Kali-
manci.
From this point the frontier will descend the Morava as
far as the River Vlossina, near the village of Sta'ikovtzi.
Reascending the latter river, as well as the Linberazda,
and the brook Koukavitze, the line will pass by the
Sukha Planina, will run along the stream Vrylo as far
as the Nisawa, and will descend the said river as
far as the village of Kronpatz, whence the line will
rejoin by the shortest route the old Servian frontier to
the south-east of Karaoul Bare, and will not leave it until
it reaches the Danube.
Ada- Kale will be evacuated and razed.
A Turco- Servian Commission, assisted by a Russian Com-
missioner, will, within three months, arrange upon the spot
the definite frontier line, and will definitely settle the
questions relating to the islands of the Drina. A Bulgarian
380 APPENDIX
delegate will be admitted to participate in the work of the
Commission when it shall be engaged on the frontier
between Servia and Bulgaria.
ARTICLE IV. The Mussulmans holding lands in the terri-
tories annexed to Servia, and who wish to reside out of the
Principality, can preserve their real property by having
them farmed out or administered by others. A Turco-
Servian Commission, assisted by a Russian Commissioner,
will be charged to decide absolutely, in the course of two
years, all questions relating to the verification of real estate
in which Mussulman interests are concerned.
This Commission will also be called upon to settle within
three years the method of alienation of State property and
of religious endowments (Vacouf), as well as the questions
relative to the interests of private persons which may be
involved. Until a direct Treaty is concluded between Turkey
and Servia determining the character of the relations
between the Sublime Porte and the Principality, Servian
subjects travelling or sojourning in the Ottoman Empire
shall be treated according to the general principles of inter-
national law.
The Servian troops shall be bound to evacuate the terri-
tory not comprised within the above-mentioned limits
within fifteen days from the signature of the Preliminaries
of Peace.
ARTICLE V. The Sublime Porte recognizes the indepen-
dence of Roumania, which will establish its right to an
indemnity, to be discussed between the two countries.
Until the conclusion of a direct Treaty between Turkey
and Roumania, Roumanian subjects will enjoy in Turkey
all the rights guaranteed to the subjects of other European
Powers.
ARTICLE VI. Bulgaria is constituted an autonomous
tributary Principality, with a Christian Government and
a national militia.
The definitive frontiers of the Bulgarian Principality will
be traced by a special Russo-Turkish Commission before
the evacuation of Roumelia by the Imperial Russian
army.
This Commission will, in working out the modifications
to be made on the spot in the general tracing, take into
account the principle of the nationality of the majority of
the inhabitants of the border districts, conformably to the
APPENDIX 381
Bases of Peace, and also the topographical necessities and
practical interests of the intercommunication of the local
population.
The extent of the Bulgarian Principality is laid down in
general terms on the accompanying map, which will serve
as a basis for the definitive fixing of the limits. Leaving the
new frontier of the Servian Principality, the line will follow
the western limit of the Caza of Wrania as far as the chain
of the Kara-dagh. Turning towards the west, the line will
follow the western limits of the Cazas of Koumanovo,
Kotchani, Kalkandelen, to Mount Korab ; thence by the
River Welestchitza as far as its junction with the black
Drina. Turning towards the south by the Drina, and after-
wards by the western limit of the Caza of Ochride towards
Mount Linas, the frontier will follow the western limits of
the Cazas of Gortcha and Starovo as far as Mount Grammos.
Then by the Lake of Kastoria, the frontier line will rejoin
the River Moglenitza, and after having followed its course,
and passed to the south of Yanitza (Wardar Yenidje), will
go by the mouth of the Warder and by the Galliko towards
the villages of Parga and of Sarai-keui ; thence through the
middle of Lake Bechik-Guel to the mouth of the Rivers
Strouma and Karassou, and by the sea-coast as far as Buru-
Guel ; thence striking north-west towards Mount Tchaltepe
by the chain of Rhodope as far as Mount Krouschowo, by
the Black Balkans (Kara-Balkan), by the mountains
Eschekkoulatchi, Tchepelion, Karakolas, and Tschiklar, as
far as the River Arda.
Thence the line will be traced in the direction of the town
of Tchirmen, and leaving the town of Adrianople to the
south, by the villages of Sugutlion, Kara-Hamza, Aronaut-
keui, Akardji, and Enidje as far as the River Tekederessi.
Following the Rivers Tekederessi and Tchorlouderessi as
far as Loule-Bourgaz, and thence, by the River Soudjak-
dere as far as the village of Serguen, the frontier line will go
by the heights straight towards Hakimtabissai, where it
will strike the Black Sea. It will leave the sea-coast near
Mangalia, following the southern boundaries of the Sandjak
of Toultcha, and will come out on the Danube above
Rassova.
ARTICLE VII. The Prince of Bulgaria shall.be freely
elected by the population and confirmed by the Sublime
Porte, with the assent of the Powers. No member of the
382 APPENDIX
reigning dynasties of the great European Powers shall be
capable of being elected Prince of Bulgaria.
In the event of the dignity of Prince of Bulgaria being
vacant, the election of the new Prince shall be made subject
to the same conditions and forms.
Before the election of the Prince, an Assembly of Bul-
garian Notables, to be convoked at Philippopolis (Plowdiw)
or Tyrnowo, shall draw up, under the superintendence of an
Imperial Russian Commissioner, and in the presence of an
Ottoman Commissioner, the organization of the future ad-
ministration, in conformity with the precedents established
in 1830 after the Peace of Adrianople, in the Danubian
Principalities.
In the localities where Bulgarians are mixed with Turks,
Greeks, Wallachians (Koutzo-Vlachs), or others, proper
account is to be taken of the rights and interests of these
populations in the elections and in the preparation of the
Organic Laws.
The introduction of the new system into Bulgaria, and the
superintendence of its working, will be intrusted for two
years to an Imperial Russian Commissioner. At the ex-
piration of the first year after the introduction of the new
system, and if an understanding on this subject has been
established between Russia, the Sublime Porte, and the
Cabinets of Europe, they can, if it is deemed necessary,
associate Special Delegates with the Imperial Russian
Commissioner.
ARTICLE VIII. The Ottoman army will no longer remain
in Bulgaria, and all the ancient fortresses will be razed at the
expense of the local Government. The Sublime Porte will
have the right to dispose, as it sees fit, of the war material
and of the other property belonging to the Ottoman Govern-
ment which may have been left in the Danubian fortresses
already evacuated in accordance with the terms of the
Armistice of the $£ January, as well as of that in the
strongholds of Schoumla and Varna.
Until the complete formation of a native militia sufficient
to preserve order, security, and tranquillity, and the strength
of which will be fixed later on by an understanding between
the Ottoman Government and the Imperial Russian Cabinet,
Russian troops will occupy the country, and will give armed
assistance to the Commissioner in case of need. This occupa-
tion will also be limited to a term approximating to two years.
APPENDIX 383
The strength of the Russian army of occupation to be
composed of six divisions of infantry and two of cavalry,
which will remain in Bulgaria after the evacuation of Turkey
by the Imperial army, shall not exceed 50,000 men. It will
be maintained at the expense of the country occupied. The
Russian troops of occupation in Bulgaria will maintain their
communications with Russia, not only through Roumania,
but also by the ports of the Black Sea, Varna, and Bourgas,
where they may organize, for the term of the occupation,
the necessary depots.
ARTICLE IX. The amount of the annual tribute which
Bulgaria is to pay the Suzerain Court, by transmitting it to
a bank to be hereafter named by the Sublime Porte, will
be determined by an agreement between Russia, the Otto-
man Government, and the other Cabinets, at the end of the
first year during which the new organization shall be in
operation. This tribute will be calculated on the average
revenue of all the territory which is to form part of the
Principality.
Bulgaria will take upon itself the obligations of the
Imperial Ottoman Government towards the Rustchuk and
Varna Railway Company, after an agreement has been come
to between the Sublime Porte, the Government of the Princi-
pality, and the Directors of this Company. The regulations
as to the other railways (votes fences) which cross the Princi-
pality are also reserved for an agreement between the
Sublime Porte, the Government established in Bulgaria, and
the Directors of the Companies concerned.
ARTICLE X. The Sublime Porte shall have the right to
make use of Bulgaria for the transport by fixed routes of
its troops, munitions, and provisions to the provinces
beyond the Principality, and vice versa. In order to avoid
difficulties and misunderstandings in the application of this
right, while guaranteeing the military necessities of the
Sublime Porte, a special regulation will lay down the con-
ditions of it within three months after the ratification of the
present Act by an understanding between the Sublime Porte
and the Bulgarian Government.
It is fully understood that this right is limited to the
regular Ottoman troops, and that the irregulars, the Bashi-
Bazouks, and the Circassians will be absolutely excluded
from it.
The Sublime Porte also reserves to itself the right of
384 APPENDIX
sending its postal service through the Principality, and of
maintaining telegraphic communication. These two points
shall also be determined in the manner and within the period
of time indicated above.
ARTICLE XI. The Mussulman proprietors or others who
fix their personal residence outside the Principality may
retain their estates by having them farmed or administered
by others. Turco-Bulgarian Commissions shall sit in the
principal centres of population, under the superintendence
of Russian Commissioners, to decide absolutely in the course
of two years all questions relative to the verification of real
property, in which either Mussulmans or others may be
interested. Similar commissions will be charged with the
duty of regulating within two years all questions relative to
the mode of alienation, working, or use for the benefit of the
Sublime Porte of the property of the State, and of the
religious endowments (Vacouf).
At the expiration of the two years mentioned above all
properties which shall not have been claimed shall be sold
by public auction, and the proceeds thereof shall be devoted
to the support of the widows and orphans, Mussulman as
well as Christian, victims of the recent events.
ARTICLE XII. All the Danubian fortresses shall be razed.
There shall be no strongholds in future on the banks of this
river, nor any men-of-war in the waters of the Principalities
of Roumania, Servia, and Bulgaria, except the usual
' stationnaires ' and the small vessels intended for river-
police and Custom-house purposes.
The rights, obligations, and prerogatives of the Inter-
national Commission of the Lower Danube are maintained
intact.
ARTICLE XIII. The Sublime Porte undertakes to render
the passage of Soulina again navigable, and to indemnify the
private individuals who have suffered loss by the war and
the interruption of the navigation of the Danube, applying
for this double charge a sum of five hundred thousand
francs from the amount due to the Sublime Porte from the
Danubian Commission.
ARTICLE XIV. The European proposals communicated
to the Ottoman Plenipotentiaries at the first sitting of the
Constantinople Conference shall immediately be introduced
into Bosnia and Herzegovina, with any modifications which
may be agreed upon in common between the Sublime
APPENDIX 385
Porte, the Government of Russia, and that of Austria-
Hungary.
The payment of arrears of taxes shall not be required, and
the current revenues of these provinces until the ist March,
1880, shall be exclusively applied to indemnify the families
of refugees and inhabitants, victims of recent events, without
distinction of race or creed, as well as to the local needs of
the country. The sum to be received annually after this
period by the Central Government shall be subsequently
lixed by a special understanding between Turkey, Russia,
and Austria-Hungary.
ARTICLE XV. The Sublime Porte engages to apply
scrupulously in the Island of Crete the Organic Law of 1868,
taking into account the previously-expressed wishes of the
native population.
An analogous law adapted to local requirements shall
likewise be introduced into Epirus, Thessaly, and the other
parts of Turkey in Europe, for which a special constitution
is not provided by the present Act.
Special Commissions, in which the native population will
be largely represented, shall in each province be entrusted
with the task of elaborating the details of the new organiza-
tion, and the result of their labours shall be submitted to
the Sublime Porte, who will consult the Imperial Govern-
ment of Russia before carrying it into effect.
ARTICLE XVI. As the evacuation by the Russian troops
of the territory which they occupy in Armenia, and which is
to be restored to Turkey, might give rise to conflicts and
complications detrimental to the maintenance of good rela-
tions between the two countries, the Sublime Porte engages
to carry into effect, without further delay, the improve-
ments and reforms demanded by local requirements in the
provinces inhabited by Armenians, and to guarantee their
security from Kurds and Circassians.
ARTICLE XVII. A full and complete amnesty is granted
by the Sublime Porte to all Ottoman subjects com-
promised by recent events, and all persons imprisoned
on this account or sent into exile shall be immediately set
at liberty.
ARTICLE XVIII. The Sublime Porte will take into
serious consideration the opinion expressed by the Com-
missioners of the Mediating Powers as regards the possession
of the town of Khotour, and engages to have the works of
1903
386 APPENDIX
the definitive delimitation of the Turco-Persian Boundary
carried into effect.
ARTICLE XIX. The war indemnities and the losses im-
posed on Russia which His Majesty the Emperor of Russia
claims, and which the Sublime Porte has bound itself to
reimburse to him, consist of —
(a) 900,000,000 roubles for war expenses (maintenance
of the army, replacing of war material, and war contracts).
(6) 400,000,000 roubles on account of damage done to
the south coast of Russia, to her export commerce, to her
industries, and to her railways.
(c) 100,000,000 roubles for injuries inflicted on the
Caucasus by the invasion ; and,
(d) 10,000,000 roubles for costs and damages of Russian
subjects and establishments in Turkey.
Total, 1,410,000,000 roubles.
Taking into consideration the financial embarrassments
of Turkey, and in accordance with the wishes of His Majesty
the Sultan, the Emperor of Russia consents to substitute for
the payment of the greater part of the moneys enumerated
in the above paragraph, the following territorial cessions :
(a) The Sandjak of Toultcha, that is to say. the districts
(Cazas) of Kilia, Soulina, Mahmoudie, Isaktcha, Toultcha,
Matchine, Babadagh, Hirsowo, Kustendje, and Medjidie,
as well as the Delta Islands and the Isle of Serpents.
Not wishing, however, to annex this territory and the
Delta Islands, Russia reserves the right of exchanging them
for the part of Bessarabia detached from her by the Treaty
of 1856, and which is bounded on the south by the thalweg
of the Kilia branch and the mouth of the Stary-Stamboul.
The question of the apportionment of waters and fisheries
shall be determined by a Russo-Roumanian Commission
within a year after the ratification of the Treaty of Peace.
(b) Ardahan, Kars, Batoum, Bayazet, and the territory
as far as the Saganlough.
In its general outline, the frontier line, leaving the Black
Sea coast, will follow the crest of the mountains which
separate the affluents of the River Hopa from those of the
River Tcharokh, and the chain of mountains to the south of
the town of Artwin up to the River Tcharokh, near the
villages of Alat and Bechaget ; then the frontier will pass
by the peaks of Mounts Dervenikghek, Hortchezor, and
Bedjiguin-Dagh, by the crest which separates the affluents
APPENDIX 387
of the Rivers Tortoum-tchai and the Tcharokh by the
heights near Zaily-Vihine, coming down at the village
Vihine-Kilissa to the River Tortoum-chaii ; thence it will
follow the Sivridagh Chain to the pass (col) of the same name,
passing south of the village of Noriman ; then it will turn
to the south-east and go to Zivine, whence the frontier,
passing west of the road which leads from Zivine to the
villages of Ardost and Horassan, will turn south by the
Saganlough Chain to the village of Gilitchman ; then by
the crest of the Charian-Dagh it will arrive, ten versts south
of Hamour, at the Mourad-tchai defile ; then the line will
follow the crest of the Alla-Dagh and the summits of the
Hori and Tandourek, and, passing south of the Bayazet
Valley, will proceed to rejoin the old Turco-Persian frontier
to the south of the lake of Kazli-gueul.
The definitive limits of the territory annexed to Russia,
and indicated on the map hereto appended, will be fixed by
a Commission composed of Russian and Ottoman delegates.
This Commission in its labours will take into account the
topography of localities, as well as considerations of good
administration and other conditions calculated to insure the
tranquillity of the country.
(c) The territories mentioned in paragraphs (a) and (b)
are ceded to Russia as an equivalent for the sum of one
milliard and one hundred million roubles. As for the rest
of the indemnity, apart from the 10,000,000 of roubles
intended to indemnify Russian interests and establishments
in Turkey — namely, 300,000,000 of roubles — the mode of
payment and guarantee of that sum shall be settled by an
understanding between the Imperial Government of Russia
and that of His Majesty the Sultan.
(d) The 10,000,000 roubles claimed as indemnity for
the Russian subjects and establishments in Turkey shall be
paid as soon as the claims of those interested are examined
by the Russian Embassy at Constantinople and handed to
the Sublime Porte.
ARTICLE XX. The Sublime Porte will take effective steps
to put an amicable end to the lawsuits of Russian subjects
pending for several years, to indemnify the latter if need be,
and to carry into effect without delay all judgments passed.
ARTICLE XXI. The inhabitants of the districts ceded to
Russia who wish to take up their residence out of these terri-
tories will be free to retire on selling all their real property.
CC2
388 APPENDIX
For this purpose an interval of three years is granted them,
counting from the date of ratification of the present Act.
On the expiration of that time those of the inhabitants
who shall not have sold their real property and left the
country shall remain Russian subjects.
Real property belonging to the State, or to religious
establishments situated out of the localities aforesaid, shall
be sold within the same interval of three years as shall be
arranged by a special Russo-Turkish Commission. The
same Commission shall be intrusted with determining how
the Ottoman Government is to remove its war material,
munitions, supplies, and other State property actually in
the forts, towns, and localities ceded to Russia, and not at
present occupied by Russian troops.
ARTICLE XXII. Russian ecclesiastics, pilgrims, and
monks travelling or sojourning in Turkey in Europe or in
Asia shall enjoy the same rights, advantages, and privileges
as the foreign ecclesiastics of any other nationality.
The right of official protection by the Imperial Embassy
and Russian Consulates in Turkey is recognized, both as
regards the persons above-mentioned, and their possessions,
religious houses, charitable institutions, &c., in the Holy
Places and elsewhere.
The monks of Mount Athos, of Russian origin, shall be
maintained in all their possessions and former privileges,
and shall continue to enjoy in the three convents belonging
to them and in the adjoining buildings the same rights and
privileges as are assured to the other religious establish-
ments and convents of Mount Athos.
ARTICLE XXIII. All the Treaties, Conventions, and
agreements previously concluded between the two High
Contracting Parties relative to commerce, jurisdiction, and
the position of Russian subjects in Turkey, and which had
been abrogated by the state of war, shall come into force
again, with the exception of the clauses affected by the
present Act. The two Governments will be placed again in
the same relation to one another, with respect to all their
engagements and commercial and other relations, as they
were in before the declaration of war.
ARTICLE XXIV. The Bosphorus and the Dardanelles
shall remain open in time of war as in time of peace to the
merchant -vessels of neutral States arriving from or bound
to Russian ports. The Sublime Porte consequently engages
APPENDIX 389
never henceforth to establish at the ports of the Black Sea
and the Sea of Azow, a fictitious blockade (Uocusfictif), at
variance with the spirit of the Declaration signed at Paris
on the T% April, 1856.
ARTICLE XXV. The complete evacuation of Turkey in
Europe, with the exception of Bulgaria, by the Russian
army will take place within three months after the con-
clusion of the definitive peace between His Majesty the
Emperor of Russia and His Majesty the Sultan.
In order to save time, and to avoid the cost of the pro-
longed maintenance of the Russian troops in Turkey and
Roumania, part of the Imperial army may proceed to the
ports of the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmora, to be there
shipped in vessels belonging to the Russian Government or
chartered for the occasion.
The evacuation of Turkey in Asia will be effected within
the space of six months, dating from the conclusion of the
definitive peace, and the Russian troops will be entitled to
take ship at Trebizond in order to return by the Caucasus
or the Crimea.
The operations of the evacuation will begin immediately
after the exchange of ratifications.
ARTICLE XXVI. As long as the Imperial Russian troops
remain in the localities which, in conformity with the present
Act, will be restored to the Sublime Porte, the administra-
tion and order of affairs will continue in the same state as
has existed since the occupation. The Sublime Porte will
not participate therein during all that time, nor until the
entire departure of all the troops.
The Ottoman forces shall not enter the places to be re-
stored to the Sublime Porte, and the Sublime Porte cannot
begin to exercise its authority there until notice of each
fortress and province having been evacuated by the Russian
troops shall have been given by the Commander of these
troops to the officer appointed for this purpose by the
Sublime Porte.
ARTICLE XXVII. The Sublime Porte undertakes not to
punish in any manner, or allow to be punished, those Otto-
man subjects who may have been compromised by their
relations with the Russian army during the war. In the
event of any persons wishing to withdraw with their families
when the Russian troops leave, the Ottoman authorities shall
not oppose their departure.
390 APPENDIX
ARTICLE XXVIII. Immediately upon the ratification of
the Preliminaries of Peace, the prisoners of war shall be reci-
procally restored under the care of special Commissioners
appointed on both sides, who for this purpose shall go to
Odessa and Sebastopol. The Ottoman Government will pay
all the expenses of the maintenance of the prisoners that are
returned to them, in eighteen equal instalments in the space
of six years, in accordance with the accounts that will be
drawn up by the above-mentioned Commissioners.
The exchange of prisoners between the Ottoman Govern-
ment and the Governments of Roumania, Servia, and
Montenegro will be made on the same basis, deducting,
however, in the account, the number of prisoners restored
by the Ottoman Government from the number of prisoners
that will have to be restored to that Government.
ARTICLE XXIX. The present Act shall be ratified by
their Imperial Majesties the Emperor of Russia and the
Emperor of the Ottomans, and the ratifications shall be
exchanged in fifteen days, or sooner if possible, at St. Peters-
burgh, where likewise an agreement shall be come to as to
the place and the time at which the stipulations of the
present Act shall be invested with all the solemn forms
usually observed in Treaties of Peace. It is, however, well
understood that the High Contracting Parties consider
themselves as formally bound by the present Act from the
moment of its ratification.
In witness whereof the respective Plenipotentiaries have
appended their signatures and seals to the present Act.
Done at San Stefano, the ntoe^hsf^*l5P, one thousand
eight hundred and seventy-eight.
Cte. N. IGNATIEW. SAP VET.
NELIDOW. SADOULLAH.
Final paragraph of Article XI of the Act of the Prelimi-
naries of Peace signed this day, F^raurci73'9, 1878, which was
omitted, and which should form an integral part of the said
Article :
The inhabitants of the Principality of Bulgaria when
travelling or sojourning in the other parts of the Ottoman
Empire shall be subject to the Ottoman laws and authorities.
(The same signatures.)
San Stefano, r!&319> 1878.
CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE
OF PRINCIPAL DOCUMENTS AND EVENTS GIVEN OR
REFERRED TO IN THIS VOLUME
The letter ' T ' indicates Texts of documents given.
,, ,, ' R ' ,, Documents and events referred to.
The figures indicate the pages.
1713. Treaty of Utrecht. Austrian Netherlands. R. 128.
1720. Guarantees respecting Schleswig. Great Britain and France.
R. 187.
1740 (and later). Capitulations. Turkey and European Powers.
R. 159.
1767. Treaty. Denmark and Russia. Schleswig. R. 187.
1773. Treaty. Denmark and Russia. Schleswig. R. 187.
'789. July. French Revolution. Destruction of Bastille. R. 16.
1/93- Jan. 21. Execution of Louis XVI. R. 18.
Feb. i. War between England and France. R. 19.
1814. Mar. 31. Surrender of Paris to Allies. R. 19.
May 3. Louis XVIII enters Paris. R. 19.
May 30. Treaty of Peace between the Allies and Franca
(the ' First Peace of Paris '). R. 19-24.
May 30. Slave-trade Article to above. T. 24 (foot-note).
May 30. Treaty of Peace. Article VI : Kingdom of Nether-
lands. R. 129.
July 30. Speech of Prince Regent on the Peace, &c.
T. (extract) 25.
Sept. General Congress assembled at Vienna. (Concluded
labours June 19, 1815.) R. 25.
Oct. 30. General Congress assembled at Vienna. First
plenary meeting. R. 29.
Oct. Task and Negotiations of Congress. R. 26 onwards.
1815. Slave-trade discussions in Vienna Congress. R. 30.
Jan.-Feb. Slave Trade. R. 32, 33.
Vienna Congress. Discussions and results. R. 30 onwards.
Jan. 3. Treaty, Defensive Alliance: Great Britain, France,
and Austria. R. 30.
March. Free Navigation of Rivers. Regulations. R. 31.
The seventeen Annexes to the Treaty of Vienna. Epi-
tome 95-98. Comprising the following documents :
Apr. 2i-May 3. I. Treaty. Austria and Russia. Poland.
Boundaries and other stipulations. 95.
Apr. 2i-May 3. II. Treaty. Russia and Prussia. Poland,
&c. 95.
Apr. 2i-May 3. III. Treaty (additional). Austria, Prussia,
Russia. Cracow. 95.
May 1 8. IV. Treaty. Prussia and Saxony, &c. Territorial
changes, Elbe navigation, &c. 95-6.
392 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE
1815. May 18-29. V. Declaration. Saxony. House of Schonburg.
96.
May 29. VI. Treaty. Prussia and Hanover. Territorial. 96.
June I. VII. Convention. Prussia and Saxe-Weimar.
Territorial. 96.
May 31. VIII. Convention. Prussia and Nassau. Terri-
torial. Ehrenbreitstein. 96.
June 8. IX. Act. Federative Constitution of Germany. 96.
May 31. X. Treaty. Great Britain, &c., and Netherlands.
Union with Belgium. 97.
Mar. 20. XI A. Declaration (eight Powers). Helvetic Con-
federacy. 97.
May 27. XI B. Act of Acceptance of above by Switzerland.
97-
Mar. 29. XII. Protocol (eight Powers). Cessions : Sardinia
to Geneva, &c. 97.
May 20. XIII. Treaty (six Powers). Sardinia, Geneva, &c.
Genoa. Chablais. Faucigny. Boundaries, &c. 97.
May 20. XIV. Conditions for Union of Genoa with Sardinia
(annexed to Annex XIII). 98.
Feb. 8. -XV. Declaration (eight Powers). Abolition of Slave-
trade. 98.
Mar. XVI. Regulations. Navigation of Rivers. 98.
Mar. 19. XVII. Regulations. Precedence of Diplomatic
Agents. 98.
June 9. Vienna Congress Treaty. T. 37-94.
June 1 8. Battle of Waterloo. R. 52.
Sept. 26. Treaty ' Holy Alliance ' : Austria, Prussia, and
Russia. R. 34, 35.
Sept. ' Holy Alliance '. Prince Regent's reply to invitation to
accede. R. 36.
Nov. 20. Treaty. ' Second Peace of Paris.' Modifications.
War Indemnity, &c. R. 36, 37.
1819. July 20. Treaty. Article 36. Luxemburg garrisoned by
Prussia. R. 257.
1822 and 1823. Conferences. Troppau and Laibach. Revolution in
Naples, &c. R. 36.
1823. Congress of Verona. Slave Trade. R. 33.
1825. Sept. 30. Proclamation of Neutrality. Greek Insurrection.
R. 105 (footnote).
1826. Apr. 4. Protocol of Petersburgh. Mediation between Greece
and Turkey. R. 105-6.
1827. July 6. Treaty. Great Britain, France, and Russia. Media-
tion between Greece and Turkey. R. 106.
Oct. 20. Battle of Navarino. Destruction of Egyptian
Fleet. R. 106-7.
1829. Sept. 14. Treaty of Adrianople. Russia and Turkey. (Settle-
ment of Greece, &c.) R. 107-8.
1830. Feb. 3. Protocol. Great Britain, France, and Russia. Inde-
pendence of Greece. R. 108. T. 120.
1831. Apr. Crown of Belgium accepted by Prince Leopold. R.
133.
Nov. 15. Treaty. Separation of Belgium from Holland
(Luxemburg, &c.). R. 133, 257.
OF DOCUMENTS AND EVENTS 393
1832. May 7. Convention. Great Britain, France, and Russia.
Independence of Greece : Guarantee, Loan, &c. R. 108.
T. 116.
1833. July 8. Treaty of Unkiar Skelessi. Russia and Turkey.
R. 166.
1839. Apr. 19. Treaty. Kingdom of Belgium (Luxemburg, &c.).
T. 141. R. 257.
1840. July 15. Treaty. Great Britain, &c., and Turkey. Pacifica-
tion of Levant. R. 167.
1846. July 8. Royal Rescript, Denmark. Danish Duchies. R. 187.
T. (extract) 188-9.
1847. Dec. 24. Treaty. Austria and Modena. Alliance. R. 214
1848. Feb. 4. Treaty. Austria and Parma. Alliance. R. 214.
1849. Aug. 6. Treaty. Austria and Sardinia. Peace. R. 212.
1850. Feb. Advice by Lord Palmerston to Denmark. Succession
question. R. 191.
July 2. Treaty. Peace. Denmark and German Confederacy :
Duchies question. R. 190.
1852. Jan. Arrangement. Danish promises respecting the Duchies.
R. 191.
May 8. Treaty. Denmark and the Powers. Integrity of
Danish monarchy : Succession. R- 191. T. 198.
1855. Sept. 8. Fall of Sebastopol.
1856. Feb. 1 8. Hatti-Hamouin. Christians in Turkey. Reforms.
R. 321.
Mar. 30. Treaty of Paris. End of Crimean War. R. 168-76,
313- T. 176.
Mar. 30. Treaty of Paris. Partial denunciation of. R. 313-
18.
Apr. 14. Declaration. Mediation before going to war.
R. 243-4, 27° (footnotes).
Apr. 16. Declaration of Paris. Maritime Law. R. 175.
T. 185.
Oct. 17. Treaty. Great Britain and United States (' Claren-
don-Dallas '). R. 5.
1859. Apr. 28. Declaration of War. Austria against Sardinia.
R. 214.
Apr. 29. Declaration of War! Sardinia against Austria.
R. 214.
May 3. Declaration of War. France against Austria. R.
214.
July IT. Preliminary Articles of Peace. France and Austria.
R. 214.
July 25. Dispatch. Lord John Russell. Views respecting
proposed reorganization of Italy. R. 216.
Aug. Italian Duchies vote annexation to Sardinia. R. 216-17.
Nov. 10. Treaty. France and Austria (and Italy). Peace.
Cession of Lombardy. R. 215-19. T. 226.
Congress (proposed). Austrian and Sardinian difficulties, &c.
R. 213, 219.
1860. Jan. I. Dispatch. Lord Cowley. Congress abandoned.
T. 219-20.
Mar. 1 8 j Decrees. Sardinia annexes Italian Duchies, &c.
Mar. 22 V R. 220-1.
394 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE
1860. Mar. 24. Treaty. France and Sardinia. Annexation of Savoy
and Nice to France. R. 222.
June 21. Arrangement. Greek Loan: Interest, &c. R. 110.
1861 Mar. 17. Law. Title of King of Italy assumed by King of
Sardinia. R. 222.
1863. July 13. Treaty. Great Britain, France, and Russia. Greek
throne. Guarantee. Cession of Ionian Islands, &c.
R. no. T. 123.
Nov. Constitution incorporating Schleswig with Denmark.
R. 192, 193.
Claim of Duke of Augustenburg to Danish Duchies. R. 193.
1864. Apr.-June. Conferences : Dano-German War. R. 195.
Oct. 30. Treaty. Austria, Prussia, Denmark. Cession of the
Duchies. R. 195. T. 199.
1865. Aug. 14. Convention. Austria and Prussia. Division of
Danish Duchies, &c. R. 196, 242.
Sept. 14. Dispatch by Earl Russell. Conduct of Austria and
Prussia re the Duchies. T. 197.
Sept. Meeting of Bismarck and Napoleon III at Biarritz
(Italy). R. 263.
1866. May. Alliance. Italy and Prussia against Austria. R. 223,
242.
May. Proposed Congress. Lord Clarendon's views. R. 243.
June 14. Prussian Declaration. Dissolution of Germanic
Confederation. R. 242.
June 17-20. Declarations of War. Italy and Prussia against
Austria. R. 223, 246.
July 26. Treaty (preliminary). Austria and Prussia. Peace.
(Cession of Venetia to Italy.) R. 223, 247.
Aug. 13. Treaty. Prussia and Wurtemberg. Peace. War
indemnity, &c. R. 249.
Aug. 17. Treaty. Prussia and Baden. Peace, &c. : Rhine
Dues. R. 249.
Aug. 22. Treaty. Prussia and Bavaria. Peace, &c. R. 250.
Aug. 23. Treaty (Prague). Austria and Prussia. Peace.
Venetia, Danish Duchies, &c. R. 224, 248. T. 251.
Aug. and Sept. Treaties. Alliance : South German States
and Prussia. R. 250.
Sept. 3. Treaty. Prussia and Hesse-Darmstadt. Peace, &c.
R. 250.
Sept. 20. Decree. Annexations to Prussia. R. 249.
Oct. 3. Treaty. Austria and Italy. Peace. (Cession of
Venetia, &c.) R. 224. T. 233.
Oct. 8. Treaty. Prussia and Saxe-Meiningen. Peace, &c.
R. 250.
Oct. 19. Proces-verbal. Delivery of Venetia to the Venetians.
R. 226.
Oct. 21. Treaty. Prussia and Saxony. Peace. Army. War
Indemnity, &c. R. 250.
1867. May ii. Treaty. Great Britain, &c. Luxemburg question
(Neutral State, &c.). R. 258, 264. T. 260.
June 14. Constitution. North German Confederation. R. 250.
July 4. Speech : Lord Derby, on nature of Guarantees, &c.
(Luxemburg question). R. 258.
OF DOCUMENTS AND EVENTS 395
1870. July 6. Statement by Due de Gramont. Hohenzollern Candi-
dature for throne of Spain. T. 266.
July 13. The Ems telegram. History of. R. 268. T. 269-70
(footnote) .
July. Hohenzollern affair. British action. R. 266-70.
July. Hohenzollern affair. Appeal to Paris Declaration as to
mediation. R. 270.
July 19. Declaration of War. France against Prussia. R. 271.
Aug. 9. Treaty. Great Britain and Prussia. Neutrality of
Belgium. R. 270-1.
Aug. 1 1 . Treaty. Great Britain and France. Neutrality of
Belgium. R. 270-1.
Oct. 31. Denunciation by Russia of Black Sea Articles of
Treaty of Paris, 1856. R. 313-16.
1871. Jan. 17. Declaration. Binding force of Treaties. T. n.
R. 320.
Jan. 1 8. King of Prussia proclaimed German Emperor.
R. 271.
Feb. 26. Treaty, preliminary. Peace, Boundaries, &c :
France and Germany. R. 271. T. 274.
Mar. 13. General Treaty. Black Sea, Dardanelles, Danube,
&c. Amendment of Treaty of Paris, 1856. R. 318-21.
T. 330.
Apr. 16. Constitution. German Empire. R. 273. T. 288.
May 10. Treaty, definitive. Peace, Boundaries, &c. : France
and Germany. R. 272. T. 279.
Oct. 12. Additional Convention. France and Germany.
Customs, Renewal of Treaties, &c. R. 272.
Dec. ii. Additional Convention. France and Germany.
Customs, Renewal of Treaties, &c. R. 272.
1870-1. Action of Prussia respecting Neutrality of Luxemburg.
R. 259.
Causes of Franco-German War. R. 271 (footnote).
1876. Jan. Andrassy Note. Eastern question. R. 322.
July. Serbia and Montenegro declare war on Turkey. R. 324.
1876-7. Constantinople Conferences. R. 324.
1877. Apr. 24. Declaration of War. Russia against Turkey. R. 324.
1878. Feb. 6. British Fleet pass through Dardanelles. R. 325.
Mar. 3. Treaty (San Stefano). Peace, &c. Russia and
Turkey. R. 325. T. 377.
June 4. Convention. Great Britain and Turkey. Alliance.
Cyprus, &c. R. 326.
June 13. Congress of Berlin. Affairs of the East. R. 326.
ni3. Treaty of Berlin. Affairs of the East. R. 326.
• 332.
1879. Oct. 7. Dual Alliance: Germany and Austria. R. 368-9.
T. 372-4-
1881. May 24. Treaty. Six Powers and Turkey. Thessaly ceded
to Greece. R. in.
1882. May. Accession of Italy to Treaty of Alliance of 1879
between Austria and Germany (Triple Alliance). Renewed
May 20, 1903. R. 369. T. 374.
1886. Apr. 5. Act. Modification of Treaty of Berlin, 1878. Union
of Bulgaria and Eastern Roumelia. R. 326.
396 CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE
1890. July i. Agreement. Anglo-German. Heligoland, &c. R. 6.
Nov. 23. Luxemburg passes from Netherlands by operation
of Salic Law. R. 259.
1892. Oct. 17. Extradition Treaty. Great Britain and Portugal.
R. 13-
1897. Turco-Greek War. R. in.
1903. May 20. Triple Alliance, 1882. Renewal. T. 374.
1908. Oct. 3. Annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina by Austria.
R. 327.
Oct. 5. Proclamation. Independence of Bulgaria. R. 327.
1912. Oct. 1 8. Treaty. Italy and Turkey. Peace. Annexation of
Tripoli. R. 327.
Sept. 30. Balkan War. R. 327.
1906-12. Conversations. British and Belgian Officers. Defence of
. Belgium against Germany. T. 152-7.
1913. May 19. Serbo-Greek Treaty of Alliance. R. 113.
May 30. Treaty. Balkan States and Turkey. Peace, &c.
R. 328. T. 361.
Aug. 10. Treaty. Balkan States and Turkey. Peace, &c.
R. 328. T. 362.
1914. Aug. 2. Commencement of European War. R. 329.
Aug. 4. Belgian appeal to Powers. Violation of Neutrality.
T. 137-
Belgium. German acknowledgement of wrongful action.
T. 136.
Aug. 22. Guarantee of Turkish Integrity proposed. R. 329.
Sept. 10. Abolition of Capitulations by Turkey. R. 329.
Nov. 5. Annexation of Cyprus by Great Britain. R. 329.
Dec. 19. Egypt declared a British Protectorate. R. 329.
1915. May. Italy withdraws from Triple Alliance. R. 372.
May 23. Declaration of War. Italy against Austria. R. 372.
Sept.-Oct. Campaign against Serbia. Occupation of Salonika.
R. "3-
1916. Aug. 28. Declaration of War. Italy against Germany. R. 372.
1917. June 12. Abdication of King Constant! ne of Greece. R. 116.
Aug. 4. Publication of Diplomatika Engrapha. R. 113.
1919. June 28. Treaty of Versailles. Peace between the Allies and
Germany. R. 5.
Covenant of the League of Nations (in Treaty of Versailles).
R. 243-4 n.
Aug. ii. Constitution of Germany. R. 288 n.
INDEX
PART I. TREATIES, CONVENTIONS,
CONGRESSES
Adrianople, 107-19.
— (1829), 173-4, 165-6.
Akerman (1826), 165 «., 172.
Amiens (1802), 19.
Andrassy Note (1876), 322.
Anglo- Belgian (1862), 8.
Anglo-German (1890), 6.
Aland Convention (1856), 174-5.
Berlin (1878), 7, 1 1, 1 1 1, 326 ff.,
345, 368. 372.
Berlin Memorandum (1876), 322.
Black Sea (1856), 313 ff.
Bosnia-Herzegovina (1908), n,
327.
Brussels (1890), 5, 6.
Bucharest (1812), 165, 172, 174.
— (1913), 112, 328, 362-4.
Cape of Good Hope, 31.
Capitulations, 159.
- (1914), 329-
Clarendon-Dallas (1856), 5.
Commercial Treaty with France
(1860), 6, 12.
Constantinople (1832), no-n.
— (1876-7), 324, 342.
— (1878) : see Cyprus.
— (1884), in n.
-(1913), 328 n.
Cyprus, Convention of (1878),
326, 329.
Danish Rescript (1846), 188-9.
Demarara (1814), 31.
Denmark (1850), 190.
— (1881), 10.
— (1883), 10.
Dominica (1850), 9, 10.
Dreikaiserbund (1872), 367-8.
Federal Act (1815), 188, 199.
Firman of 1841, 168.
— of 1856 (Hatti-Hamouin), 169.
Frankfort (1819), 257.
— (1871), 272, 367.
Friedrichshamm, 1809, 174.
Gastein (1865), 196, 241-2, 263.
Germanic Confederation (1820),
188.
Hatti-Hamouin (1856), see Fir-
man.
Hawaii (1851), 9.
Holstein Convention (1720), 187.
— (I767),i87.
— (1773), 187.
Holy Alliance (1816), 34-6, 367.
Italian Duchies (1847), 213-14.
Jassy (1792), 164.
Konia (1880), 347.
Kutschuk-Kainardji(i775), 159-
60, 173.
Laibach (1821), 36.
Lauenburg (1815), 187.
Lausanne (1912), 327.
London (1827), 105-9.
— (1830), 108-9, J3°-
— (1831), 33, 133-5,257.
— (1832), 108-11.
-(i839), 33, 134-9, 257, 271.
— (1852), 191 ff.
— (1863), 109-11.
— (1864), iio-ii, 195, 197.
— (1867), 14, 135, 257»
— (1870), 136.
— (1871), ii, 318.
— (1883), s, 15.
— (1913), 112, 328.
398
INDEX
Mayence (1831), 147.
Mediation (1856), 243 and «., 270.
Milan (1849), 213-
Navigable rivers, 31.
Netherlands (1814), 31.
Nikolsburg (1866), 223, 247.
Paris (1814), 19-25, 26, 31, 31 n.,
32, 36, 37, 48, 129, 149.
— (1815), 36-7.
— (1856). ii, 14, 158 ft., 163 ft.,
270, 312 ft.
— Declaration of (1856), 175.
— (1882), 12.
Poland (1832), 38 M.
Portsmouth (1905), 12.
Portugal (1883), 10.
— (1892), 13.
Protocol of 24 Articles (1831),
133-
Russian Circular (1871), 313 ff.
St. Petersburg (1826), 105-6.
San Stefano (1878), 325 ff., 341,
357-8, Appendix.
Scheldt (1715), 134.
Serbia (1901), 10.
Serbo-Greek (1913), 113 and n.
Slave Trade, 32-3.
Spain (1817), 26.
— (1878), 10.
Straits, Convention of the ( 1 84 1 ) ,
168, 178.
Tilsit (1807), 38 and n., 47, 48,
165.
Triple Alliance (1788), 164.
— (1882), 369 ff.
— (1903), 370.
Troppau (1820), 36.
Turin (1860), 222.
Unkiar Skelessi (1833), i66ff.
U.S.A. (1842), 10.
Utrecht (1579), 128.
— (1713), 128, 256.
Verdun (843), 126.
Verona (1822), 25 n., 33.
Versailles (1871), 271.
— (I9I9), 5-
Vienna (1809), 39 and n.
— Congress (1814-15), 16-37,
130, 134, 158, 212, 256.
— (1815), 6, 7, 16-98, 128, 129,
150, 171, 187,201,210, 213, 222.
— (1864), *95 fc» 241-2, 248.
— (1878), 252 n.
— (1879), 368 ff.
— (1908) (Bosnia-Herzegovina),
327-
Vienna Note (1853), 162.
Villafranca (1859), 2i4ff.
Westphalia (1648), 134.
Zollverein (1865), 8, 9, 249.
— (1867), 299.
Zurich (1859), 76.
PART II. GENERAL
Aali, 184.
Abeken, 269 n.
Aberdeen, Lord, 22, 123, 162.
Acarnania, 1 1 1 .
Adrianople, 324, 328.
Aland Islands, 174-5.
Albania, 328.
Alexander of Battenberg, 326
Alexander I, 27-9, 32, 103, 104,
105, 164-5.
Alexander II, 312-13, 324, 374 w
Alexandria, 168.
Alexandrowo, 368, 374.
Ali Pasha of Yanina, 104.
Alsace, 34, 271, 274.
Ambrois, des, 233.
Andrassy, 322, 360, 374.
Antwerp, 22, 133, 134, 135.
Apponyi, 262, 332.
Arnim, 285, 288.
Arta, in.
Augustenburg, Duke of, 187 ff.
Austria, House of, 225.
Austrian Succession War, 130.
Austro-Bourbon Alliance (1756),
128.
Azeglio, D', 262.
Baden, 249.
Balan, 209.
INDEX
399
Balkan League, 327.
Balkan Wars (1912-13), 112,
327 flf.
Banneville, 233.
Bastille, 16.
Batavian Republic, 129.
Batoum, 327.
Bavaria, 250.
Beaconsneld, Earl of : see
Disraeli.
Belfort, 272.
Benedetti, 14, 269, 370-1.
Bentinck, 262.
Bernstorff, 262, 332.
Bessarabia, 173.
Bethlehem, 160.
Bethmann-Hollweg, 136.
Biarritz, 263.
Bille, 125, 199.
Bismarck, 195 ff., 241, 259,
2635., 278, 285, 288, 317,
360, 368, 371.
Black Sea, n.
Bologna, 220.
Bosnia, 327.
Bosphorus, 165 ff.
Bourbon, House of, 18, 19,
132.
Bourqueney, 184, 233.
Braila, 320.
Bray-Steinburg, 279.
Brenner, 209, 255.
Breslau, 329.
Broglie, 332.
Bruges, 127.
Brunnow, 125, 184, 197, 262,
332.
Brunswick, 250.
Brussels, 132-3.
Bukovina, 172.
Bulair, lines of, 325, 327.
Bulgaria, 327.
Bulow, 142, 360.
Bunsen, 177.
Buol-Schauenstein, 184.
Burgundy, House of, 256.
Busch, 268.
Byron, Lord, 104.
Cadorna, 332.
Canning, George, 104-7, l^5-
Capodistrias, 108.
Caratheodory, 360.
Carrara, 220.
Castlereagh, Lord, 22, 25, 30, 32,
104.
Cathcart, Lord, 22, 25, 94.
Catherine II, 164.
Cavour, 169, 184.
Chablais, 210 ff.
Chambery, 213.
Charles the Bold, 127.
Charles I of Roumania, 314.
Charles V, 127.
Charles X, 132.
Chatalja, lines of, 328.
Christesco, 366.
Christian III. 187.
Christian IX, no, 191 ff.
Church, Sir Richard, 104.
Clancarty, Lord, 25, 94.
Clarendon, Lord, 5 «., 184, 243.
Coalition, 1792, 18.
Coanda, 366.
Cobden, Richard, 12.
Cochrane (Lord Dundonald),
105.
Codrington, Admiral, 107.
Concert of Europe, 158, 163,
169.
Constantinople, 159 ff., 324, 328.
Coraes, 103.
Corti, 360.
Cotto, A. de, 119.
Couza, Prince, 174, 314.
Cowley, Lord, 184, 215.
Crete, 112, 328.
Crimean War, in. I58ff.
Crowe, J. A., 15.
Crusades, 163.
Custine, General, 18.
Cyclades, in.
Cyprus, 326.
D'Alberg, Due, 94.
Danube, 15 ; navigation of, 5,
171-2, 320.
Danubian Principalities, 171-4.
Dardanelles, 107, 163, 165 ff.,
325. 329. 371.
Dedeagach, 328.
Dedel, 142.
Derby, Lord, 325.
Desprez, 360.
Diebitsch, 107, 109.
Die Wacht am Rhein, 168 n.
Disraeli, 322 ff., 360.
Dissesco, 366.
400
INDEX
Djemil. Mehemmed, 184.
Dniester, 173.
Dobruja, 328.
Edward IV, 127.
Egypt, 329.
Elba. 19.
Emilia, 220.
Ems telegram, 268-9.
Enos-Midia line, 328.
Euboea, in.
Eu ropean Commission of Danube,
171-2, 320.
European War (1914), 112,
135, 329, 369, 372.
Exadactylos, 366.
Fane, Julian, 15.
Faucigny, 210 ff.
Favre, Jules, 278, 285, 288.
Feodosia, 329.
Ferdinand I, 127.
Ferdinand IV, 30, 210.
Ferrara, 220.
Finland, 174.
Fitcheff, 366.
Flanders, 18.
Florence, 226.
Franco-Prussian War, 367.
Frankfort, 196, 249.
Frankfort Diet, 241, 317.
Frederick the Great, 264.
Frederick William IV, 190.
Frederick VI, 187.
Frederick VII, 188-94.
Fried land, 165.
Forli, 220.
Galicia, 29, 30.
Gallipoli, 325, 328.
Gama, de Saldahna da, 94.
Gazette, London, 9.
Geneva, 22.
Genoa, 210 ff.
George I, 110-12.
George IV (Prince Regent), 25,
36.
George I (Greece), 327.
German Empire, 33, 273-4.
Germanic Confederation, 31, 33,
i86.ff., 223, 241 ff., 317.
Girondists, 18.
Glucksburg, House of, 191.
Goderich, Lord, 106.
Goeben, 329.
Gorchakoff, 313 ff., 360, 367.
Goulard, de, 285, 288.
Graeco-Turkish War (1897), 1 1 1.
Gramont, Due de, 264 ff.
Granville, Earl, 15, 139, 259,
266 ff., 318. 332.
Greek War of Independence, 165.
Grey, Sir E., 328.
Gros, Bon., 125.
Garda, Lake of, 219.
Habsburg, House of, 127-8, 256.
Hanover, 249-50.
Hanse Towns, 35.
Hardenberg, Prince, 94.
Hatzfeldt, d', 184.
Haymerle, 360.
Heligoland, 6.
Henry V, 127.
Herzegovina, 321 ff., 327.
Hesse-Cassel, 247, 249.
Hesse-Darmstadt, 250.
Hetaeria, Philike, 103.
Hohenlohe, 360.
Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen,
House of, 314.
Holstein, i86ff., 243, 247-8.
Holy Alliance, 7 «., 99.
Holy Places, 160.
Holy See, 210 ff.
Hubner, 184.
Humboldt, Baron, 24.
Ibrahim Pasha, 105, 106, 166-7.
Imperial Chancellor, 1 36.
India, 22.
Ionia, 112.
Ionian Islands, in.
Isabella of Bourbon, 127.
Isatcha, 171-2, 320.
Italy, Kingdom of, 33.
Ivantchoff, 366.
Jocteau, 233.
John II, 127.
Jolly, 279.
Jonesco, Take, 366.
Kalafatovitch, 366.
Karolyi, 233, 360.
Kauffmann, 209.
Kavalla, 328, 371.
INDEX
401
Kiel Canal, 240.
Konieh, 166.
Konigstein, 250.
Kubeck, 199.
La Tour D'Auvergne, 262.
Lauenburg, 187 ff.
Launay, 360.
Legations, 216 ff.
— Papal, 31.
Leipsic, battle of, 129.
Leipzig University, 250.
Leopold I, 1 08.
Leopold I (Belgium), 133.
Leopold of Hohenzollern-Sig-
maringen, 264 ff .
Libyan War, 371.
Lieven, Prince, 119, 123.
Limburg, 133-4.
Liverpool, Earl of, 106.
Lombardo-Venetian kingdom,
33, 214 ff-
Lombardy, 31, 33, 210 ff.
Lorraine, 34, 126, 271, 274.
— House of, 216.
Louis XV, 127.
Louis XVI, 16, 18.
Louis XVII, 19.
Louis XVIII, 19, 26, 132.
Louis Buonaparte, 129.
Louis Philippe, 132.
Lowenhielm, Comte, 94.
Ludwig I, 109.
Luxemburg, 134, 135.
Luxemburg City, 134.
Lyons, Lord, 267.
Mackensen, Marshal von, 115.
Maastricht, 134.
Magenta, 214.
Mahmud II, 105, 167.
Main, 135, 250.
Maioresco, 366.
Malmesbury, Lord, 199.
Malta, 22.
Manteuffel, 184.
Mantua, 217.
Margaret of Burgundy, 127.
Marghiloman, 366.
Marie Antoinette, Queen, 18.
Marie Louise, Empress, 31.
Marmara, Sea of, 325.
Mary of Burgundy, 127.
Massa, 220.
Matanovitch, 366.
Matuszewic, 119.
Maximilian I, 127.
Mecklenburg-Schwerin, 250.
Mehemet AH, 105, 166-8, 360.
Menabrea, 239-40.
Menshikoff, Prince, 160.
Metternich, 93, 104.
Metz, 259, 313.
Meuse, 133.
Meysenbug, 233.
Mittnacht, 279.
Modena, 214 ff.
Moldavia, 102-4, *6o ff., 165,
171 ff., 314.
Moltke, von, 247, 264, 268.
Moniteur Beige, 9.
Monte-Lombardo, 226.
Montmorency-Laval, 123.
Moselle, 134, 272.
Motley, J. L., 128.
Murat, 30.
Musurus, 332.
Napier, Sir Charles, 168.
Napoleon I, 19, 25, 124, 164-5,
212.
Napoleon III, 160 ff., 263 ff.,
317-
Nations, League of, 243 4»t.
Navarino, 106-7, IO9. J65
Neckar, 134.
Negropont : see Euboea.
Nesselrode, Comte, 94.
Netherlands, Spanish. 127.
I Neutrality of Switzerland, 2 10 ff.
i Newfoundland, 22.
Nice, 221 ff.
Nicholas I, 105, 107, 160 ff., 312.
Nisib, 167.
Noailles, Comte de, 94.
North German Confederation,
33, 250, 251, 257, 262 ff.
Obrenovitch, Prince Milosh, 174.
Oczakov, 164.
Odessa, 102, 103, 164, 329.
i Orange-Nassau, House of, 128-
33, 256, 259.
Orleans, House of, 132.
Orloff, 184.
Otho I, 109-10.
Oubril, d', 360
402
INDEX
Pachitch, 366.
Pali, 366.
Palmella, Comte de, 94.
Palmerston, Lord, 119, 142, 167,
191.
Panas, 366.
Papal States, 2 1 2 ff .
Paris, 317.
Parliament and Treaties, 5-6, 12.
Parma, 32, 214 ff.
Peschiera. 217.
Phanariots, 102, 103.
Philip I of Burgundy, 127.
Philip the Good, 127.
Philip II of Spain, 127.
Philippopolis, 326.
Piacenza, 220.
Piedmont, 212 ff.
Pitt, 164.
Po, 219.
Poland, 27, 28. 195.
Polignac, Due de, 132.
Politis, 366.
Pomerania, Swedish, 30.
Posen, 29, 30, 374 n.
Pourger-Quertier, 285, 288.
Pozzo di Borgo, 142.
Prim, General, 264-5.
Pruth, 104, 165, 173.
Quaade, 209.
Radeff, 366.
Rasoumoffsky, Prince, 94.
Ravenna, 220.
Rechberg, 209.
Reggio, 220.
Rehausen, 199.
Restitch, 366.
Reuss, Henry VII of, 374.
Revolution (1789), 16-17, 128.
- (1830), 132, 257.
Rhine, 134.
— dues, 250.
— navigation of, 31.
River Commission of Danube,
171-2, 320.
Robespierre, 18.
Romagna, 217 ff.
Rome, 226, 317.
Roon, von, 269.
Rumelia, Eastern, 326.
Rupel, 115.
Russell, Earl, 27, 125, 197, 219.
Russell, Lord Odo, 360.
Russo-Turkish War (1806-12),
"I. 174.
— (1877-8), in, 324 ff., 368.
Sadoullah, 360, 390.
St. Helena, 25.
Saint-Vallier, 360.
Salisbury, Marquis of, 360.
Salonika, 113, 325, 328, 371.
Sardinia, 169, 210 ff.
Savoy, 1 8, 210 ff.
Saxe-Meiningen, 250.
Saxony, 247-50.
Scheldt, 134-5.
Schleswig, 186 ff., 247 ff.
Schleswig-Holstein, 317.
Schneckenburger, Max, 168 n.
Schouvaloff, 325 n., 360.
Sebastiani, 142.
Sebastopol, 163.
Sedan, 271, 313.
Senate U.S., and Treaties, 5.
Senff, 142.
Serbia, autonomy, 165.
— independence, 174.
Servais, 262.
Seven Years' War, 264.
Seymour, Sir H., 162.
Sicilies, Two, 210 ff.
Sicily, 33.
Silesian Wars, 264.
Silistria, 163.
Silveira, Loboda, 94.
Slave Trade, 5, 6, 24, 25 «., 31-3.
Smilianitch, 366.
Solferino, 214.
Spalaikovitch, 366.
Spanish- American War, 175.
Spanish Netherlands, 256.
Spanish Succession War, 128,
134, 212.
Stackelberg, Comte, 94.
Stanley, Lord, 14-15, 262.
Standoff, 366.
States-System, European, 163.
Stewart, Sir Charles, 22, 25, 94.
Stockholm, 174.
Stratford de Redcliffe, Lord,
i6off.
Sweden and Norway, Union of,
34-
Swiss Confederation, 210 ff.
INDEX
403
Talleyrand, Prince de Benevent,
22, 29, 30, 94, 1 19.
Thessaly (1881), ill.
Thiers, A., 278.
Thionville, 259.
Thirty Years' War, 1 34.
Tontcheff, 366.
Tornaco, 262.
Trentino, 372.
Trieste, 371.
Tripoli, 327, 371.
Turco -Italian War (1911-12),
371.
Turin, 226.
Tuscany, 212 ff.
Van de Weycr, 262.
Varennes, 18.
Venetia, 2ioff., 243, 263.
Venice, 31,2125.
Venizelos, Eleutheros, 112, 113,
327. 366.
Versailles, 16, 18.
Victor Emmanuel, 216 ff.
Victor Emmanuel Railway, 213.
Victoria, Queen, 133.
Villamarina, de, 184.
Volo, in.
Voukotitch, 366.
Wachter, 279.
Waddington, W. H., in, 36°-
Walewski, Count, 14, 184, 197.
Wallachia, 102-4, I^° **•• 1^>S»
171 ff., 314.
Warsaw, Grand Duchy of, 29,
30, 37-8-
Waterloo, 25.
Wellington, Duke of, 25, 105,
107.
Werther, 209, 255.
Wessenberg, Baron, 93.
William I, 241, 2696., 374 n.
William I (Netherlands), 130.
William IV, 259.
Wimp ff en, 239-40.
Wittelsbach, House of, 109.
Wurtemberg, 247, 249.
Ypsilanti, Alexander, 103.
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